It’s game on for magnificent China-funded Abidjan stadium

The Chinese-funded Abidjan Olympic Stadium — the biggest and most modern sports stadium in the African continent — is set to go into use in Cote d’Ivoire in 2019, a facility that is expected to improve the nation’s sports infrastructure and benefit its local people.

The stadium, with an area of 200,000 square meters and boasting 60,000 seats, will host the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial international men’s football championship organized by the Confederation of African Football. Total investment is 750 million yuan ($109 million).

Marref Darek Kouassi, captain of a local football team, said he hopes he can be part of the event.

“We are not yet qualified to compete in the national championship. But we are training hard for it day and night,” he told China Global Television Network in an interview.

For years, Kouassi and his team members have been training on a muddy field in downtown Abidjan, Cote d’lvoire.

It’s a major thoroughfare for the cars and motorbikes which pass through. Kouassi said players have been hit or injured by cars. He said the ground was always filled with puddles after rain, so the team had to spend a lot of time cleaning up before practicing.

Kouassi said he is happy to see the younger generation get the opportunity to have such infrastructure and a long-term facility for their use.

“Playing in such a big and professional venue makes me happy. And that in turn can improve my technique,” he said.

Xing Zhenjiang, a team leader at Beijing Construction Engineering Group International, said they had over 2,000 people working on the project, of whom 1,700 were locals.

He said they needed more workers for decorating the stadium, which would create more job opportunities for neighboring villages.

The Chinese embassy’s economic and commercial counselor in Cote d’Ivoire, Sun Liang, said at a media event in April that China and Cote d’Ivoire were good friends.

He said the Chinese government firmly supported the development of Cote d’Ivoire. The stadium is another representative project of China-Cote d’Ivoire cooperation, he added.

CGTN contributed to the story.