World Police and Fire Games headline Chengdu's recent success as host city

With sports posters and relevant facilities set all around the city, Chengdu is gearing up for the 2019 World Police and Fire Games to be in August.

It is the first time in the event's 34-year history that it will take place in Asia.

To date, the event has attracted athletes from 69 countries and regions, organizers said. WPFG is a biennial athletic event, open to active and retired law enforcement and fire service personnel from across the world.

Larry Collins, president of the California Police Athletic Federation, said among all the WPFG he and his colleagues have participated in, Chengdu's preparation was the most impressive.

The committee advertised the event in countries and regions involved in the Belt and Road Initiative, and has invited nearly 20 countries to participate in the upcoming event in Chengdu for the first time, Collins said.

In recent years, Chengdu has become a host city for a growing number of international sports events. This year, it held a series of events including the FIE Women's Epee World Cup (China) in March, the ITU Triathlon World Cup in May and the upcoming Chengdu Marathon in October.

The city earned a gold medal as a remarkable host city of events by both the International Basketball Federation and the International Triathlon Union. Chengdu has also recently won opportunities to be the host city of the 31st Summer Universiade in 2021 and the 56th World Team Table Tennis Championships in 2022.

In May, Chengdu was confirmed as the host city of the World Games in 2025, becoming the first Chinese mainland city to host the event.

"Chengdu is an international metropolis, and hosting the World Games will bring more international elements here," said Joachim Gossow, chief executive of the International World Games Association. According to the ranking of Global Sports Impact Nations and Cities Index released by Sportcal, a sports market intelligence provider, Chengdu ranked in 28th in 2019.

Colin Stewart, a senior analyst at Sportcal, said Chengdu's increasing ranking comes thanks in part to its development into an international arena.

In 2018, the Chengdu city government issued a three-year action plan to build Chengdu into a host city of world events with facilities including a state-of-the-art stadium. Chengdu has also constructed a 16,930-kilometer-long green lane and a city forest park of 1,275 square kilometers, part of its effort to promote the development of outdoor sports industries. Next, Chengdu will gather its venues incorporating the Tianfu Olympic City, and the sports center at Fenghuang Mountain, to provide better conditions for events.

liangkaiyan@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 07/13/2019 page6)