Opening Ceremony of the 4th “Belt and Road” Chengdu Global Xiangqi Pairs Tournament 2021

Original article published by Chinese Xiangqi Association 2021-12-17 23:21

The Opening Ceremony of the 4th “Belt and Road” Chengdu Global Xiangqi Pairs Tournament 2021 Opening Ceremony was held at Chengdu on the 17^th of December. Amongst the elites who graced the event were:

• Zhu Guoping, Executive Vice-President of the World Xiangqi Federation, Head of the Board and Card Games Administrative Center of the General Administration of Sport of China, and also President of the Chinese Xiangqi Association,
• Xiong Yan, Deputy Secretary General of Chengdu Municipal Government, and Director of Municipal Sports Bureau at Chengdu,
• Lü Qin, Vice-President of the Chinese Xiangqi Association, Head of the Board and Card Games Administrative Center in Guangdong,
• Yu Linkang, Second Inspector of Sichuan Provincial Sports Bureau,
• Yang Shenwei, Secretary of the Party Committee of Chengdu Sports Bureau,
• Zhou Hongbin, Deputy Director of the Standing Committee of the People's Congress of Shuangliu District.

The competitors hailed from China, Germany, Russia, Belarus, Cambodia, Malaysia, and Italy. Overall, 32 competitors from seven countries participated in the tournament that was divided into an online format and a regular tournament.

Mr. Timothy Fok, President of the World Xiangqi Federation, delivered a video conference speech. He said:

"The official launching ceremony of the 4th “Belt and Road” Chengdu Global Xiangqi Pairs Tournament 2021 Opening Ceremony is held in beautiful Chengdu. I want to represent the World Xiangqi Federation to express our heartiest congratulations on the event's success and send our sincerest regards to those in attendance! In recent years, Chengdu's efforts in promoting Xiangqi at the highest level have been most praiseworthy. Their never-ending quest to raise the bar deserves our respect.

We are pleased to announce that the World Xiangqi Federation has deepened our collaboration with the city of Chengdu, using Xiangqi as a link and the tournament as a platform to promote Xiangqi globally. It would foster the interaction of Xiangqi lovers worldwide and thus further develop the heritage of Xiangqi and promote the culture of Xiangqi further. We hope that this event will become another accolade in Chengdu's already impressive list of holding international events."

The Executive Vice-President of the World Xiangqi Federation, Mr. Zhu Guoping, delivered the opening speech for the event. Mr. Zhu is also the Head of the Board and Card Games Administrative Center of the General Administration of Sport of China. He is also the Head of the Chinese Xiangqi Association. The World Xiangqi Tag Team Championships started in 2017 and have since been well received by Xiangqi players worldwide. The event has gathered positive feedback.

In adaptation to the Covid pandemic, the tournament was still held adopting two formats: online and regular tournaments. The online format allowed Xiangqi players worldwide to gather in the 'clouds' online. It was the first time that a major tournament of its nature could be brought online while preserving its competitiveness and treating the fans to an exciting competition. It marked a new chapter in promoting Xiangqi overseas. It was a bold and meaningful attempt to break the traditional norms of competition, ushering in a new era of Xiangqi. In the future, the Chinese Xiangqi Association will collaborate further with the Chengdu authorities to further Xiangqi promotion in the world using this format. The prospects of such a method of promotion look bright and rosy.