Building Bridges Through Sports
Sports know no boundary, and sports exchange is one of the most important ways to promote mutual understanding among the people worldwide. Though located far away from each other geographically, sports exchanges between China and African countries have seen rapid upsurge in recent years, thus boosting mutual understanding. The unforgettable FIFA World Cup held in South Africa in 2010 and the beautiful song Waka Waka (This Time for Africa) deeply impressed Chinese audiences with South African image and African people’s enthusiasm for sports, stirring the passion of millions of Chinese football fans. The Beijing 2008 Olympic Summer Games and Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games also attracted African people to learn more about China.
Sports tell stories of peace, friendship and common advancement, which is meaningful especially in the current world beset with conflicts and unrests. In the past decades, sports exchanges between China and Africa have been playing an important role in boosting bilateral relations, deepening mutual understanding and trust, and promoting lasting friendship. Thanks to African football stars like Cédric Bakambu, Demba Ba, Didier Drogba and Christian Bassogog, who have played or are playing football in the Chinese Super League, China’s football level keeps going up. Similarly, helped by Chinese athletes and coaches, African countries have raised their level in sports such as table tennis, badminton and volleyball, in which they were not strong before. China-Africa sports exchanges started in 1957 when Chinese table tennis team visited Egypt, just one year after the two countries established diplomatic relations. Since then, exchange visits of basketball teams, football teams and so on have become increasingly frequent.
According to the China-Africa Cooperation Vision 2035 signed at the Eighth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on ChinaAfrica Cooperation in Senegal in late 2021, “China and Africa will strengthen practical cooperation in sports and support the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic
Games to promote sports in Africa.”
China-Africa sports exchanges and cooperation are not limited to athletic exchanges and trainings. Sports venue construction is an important way to improve African countries’ sporting level. On 8 September, the Laurent Pokou Stadium, built by China Civil Engineering Construction Corp., was completed and handed over to Côte d’Ivoire, which means the venue for the 34th edition of Africa Cup of Nations is ready for activities. Since 1955, China has built more than 80 large stadiums with a combined 3 million seats. The construction of these venues has greatly improved the sports development in African countries, increased people’s living standard and employment, and further consolidated China-Africa friendship.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative, in which increasing people-to-people ties is an important goal. Under the framework, China-Africa sports exchanges and cooperation are thriving. In the years to come, sports will serve as a bridge connecting China and Africa, contributing to the building of a closer ChinaAfrica community of shared future.