A sculptor takes a photo of a giant snow sculpture at the Sun Island scenic area in Harbin, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, Dec. 12, 2023. With numerous snow sculptures constructed in the theme park titled "snow world", the city of Harbin, known as China's "ice city" in the northeast, is witnessing the coming of its high season for tourism.(Photo: Xinhua)

The internationalization of Chinese football youth training is very important, said Chinese Football Association (CFA) President Song Kai at a launch ceremony for the Bundesliga Dream project in Shanghai on Wednesday. "We are working on it by both introducing international youth football coaches to China, and sending young athletes and coaches to learn and train abroad, including in Germany," Song told the Global Times.

Song noted the significance of strengthening youth training and overseas cooperation for the development of Chinese football. "Germany's youth football training system is probably the most advanced in the world, and it is worth learning from it," Song said in a speech at the ceremony.

Bundesliga Dream is a cooperative project between Bundesliga International and the CFA. Set to take place between February and March in 2024, a group of talented Chinese players from the U16 national team will train at the youth academies of several Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 clubs, as well as playing against youth teams from around Germany, according to Bundesliga International.

Under the project, Chinese youth players will follow a structured training plan curated by the CFA in collaboration with the Bundesliga and participating clubs. This plan focuses on several key in-match scenarios, including the transition from defense to attack.

"We also encourage young football players from all cities, especially from our 16 key 'football cities,' to have the opportunity to get trained in countries like Germany," Song said, in response to a question raised by the Global Times at the Wednesday ceremony.

Song mentioned China's 3-0 home loss to South Korea in the 2026 FIFA World Cup Asian Zone qualifying tournament second stage on the previous evening.

"That match made me feel deeply that if Chinese football wants to improve, first, we must do a good job in cultivating the young people; and second, we must examine the development of our youth football from a global perspective," he said.

"So I'm glad to sign a long-term cooperation agreement with the Bundesliga," Song said. "Last night, German Jurgen Klinsmann led the South Korean team to a 3-0 victory over the Chinese team. I hope that one day, there will be a German head coach who leads the Chinese football team to a 4-0 victory over South Korea," he joked, drawing laughter and applause.

Peer Naubert, head of marketing at Bundesliga International, said that the Bundesliga Dream is mostly committed to working with Chinese football in supporting its youth development system and projects on a long-term basis. "We aim to create a long-term pathway for talented Chinese players … hopefully following the path of former Chinese players such as Shao Jiayi, Yang Chen, and more recently Liu Shaoziyang, who signed for Bayern Munich in 2021," Naubert said in a speech at the ceremony.

Renowned Bundesliga stars Shao and Lothar Matthäus also attended the ceremony.

"I'm happy to have this Bundesliga Dream for the Chinese young generation," Matthäus said. When the young Chinese players go to Germany, they will have the opportunities of playing against stronger players, and the competition can make them better, he added.

China's golfing prodigy Yin Ruoning has climbed to the top of the leader board as the world No.1 in ladies' professional golf on Sunday after finishing third at the LPGA Queen City Championship.

The 20-year-old became the second Chinese woman to claim the world No.1 ranking after Feng Shanshan, who held on to her top standing from November 2017 to April 2018.

"It means a lot. For me it's like a dream come true," Yin said. "I've got Goosebumps. World No.1 is the next big step on the way to living up to Shanshan's legacy."

Yin, who needed a top-four result to overtake American Lilia Vu for the LPGA top spot at the Queen City Championship, will play on the Chinese team coached by Feng at the Asian Games, which opens on September 23 in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang Province.

"I didn't get a lot of chance to chat with Shanshan," Yin said of her predecessor.

"But I'm looking forward to going back to China, playing at the Asian Games, spending more time with her, and learning from her."

Yin has said her greatest wish is to play for China in the Asian Games and Olympic Games.

When talking about her expectations for the upcoming Asian Games, Yin told the Global Times that she and her teammates only have one goal in the competition - to see "China's national flag raised" and hear "the national anthem played."

Speaking on Yin's achievement, Feng said she believes Yin could set more records.

"Behind [her] meteoric rise to the top is a decade of steady work," Feng wrote on Weibo after Yin's rise to world No.1. "The new generation will continue to set more and more records."

Feng retired from pro golfing in August 2022, leaving with a major, 10 LPGA Tour victories and the title of world No.1 ranking under her belt.

Yin won her first major title in June at the Women's PGA Championship, two months after collecting her first LPGA victory at the LA Open.

Yin had not yet started playing golf when Feng won the Women's PGA Championship in 2012 to become the first Chinese player to win a major.

The Hangzhou Asian Games were one of the coolest and most beautiful competitions he had ever participated in, Kuwaiti shooter Abdullah Alrashidi said.

In a recent interview with Xinhua, the gold medalist in the men's skeet individual event praised the organization, beauty, and cleanliness of the entire city for the Games.

Alrashidi said he was very pleased that he had won the gold medal, which also matched the world record in the event.

He noted Asia's remarkable progress in the shooting discipline, highlighting its impressive track record of winning numerous world championships.

"Countries such as China, Kazakhstan, Qatar, and Kuwait have a rich history in this sport on both the continental and global levels," he said.

"China is one of the most important and largest countries represented in all sports," said the Kuwaiti shooter, noting that "China has made great progress and consistently won medals in the Olympics and other world competitions."

On Wednesday, Kuwait's Minister of Commerce and Industry and Minister of State for Youth Affairs, Muhammad Al-Aiban, received Kuwaiti players who had won medals in shooting and athletics competitions at the Hangzhou Asian Games.

In a statement, Al-Aiban expressed pride in the outstanding achievements of the Kuwaiti medalists at the Hangzhou Asian Games, where they won two gold, three silver, and one bronze medals.

If you have recently taken an evening walk in a park, you might have come across some young people wearing fluorescent bracelets running and hiding to evade capture. Not only is this nothing to be scared of, but it's the latest sweeping sensation among social games in China.
After frisbee became a phenomenal across the country, young people in China now "invented" a new outlet to channel their stress and socialize: Originating from some college campuses early this year, the live-action cat-and-mouse game has instantly taken many cities by storm.

If you search for the key words "cat-and-mouse game" on platforms such as Xiaohongshu or Douyin, the domestic version of Tiktok, you will find a multitude of online groups organizing the game in parks, plazas and lakes.

It takes only 7 to 19 yuan ($0.9-2.6) to sign up for one game where you will be provided a bottle of water, an insurance, fluorescent bracelets and light sticks. Dozens of participants will be divided into two teams: "cats" and "mice." The cat team is tasked with capturing as many mice as possible within the designated time and game area.

Physical contact is not allowed during the game, however a light touch by the "cat" will turn the "mouse" into a member of the "cat" group and the catcher will be awarded a light stick. The "cat" who got the most light sticks will be crowned the "king of cats." 

Hide-and-seek

The rules of the game are reminescent of hide-and-seek, but technology adds a new dimension to the game and makes it a more intensive exercise. 

All participants are required to turn on location sharing on their mobile phone application so that every body's real-time location is clear at a glance. 

Unlike the traditional hide-and-seek where the "mice" hide in one place and wait to be found, the "mice" of this game have to keep moving and evade capture in the dark. Within an area about five kilometers wide, running and taking advantage of stairs, woods and shelters looks like a live version of Fast and Furious.

The game has quickly become a phenomenon in more than 50 cities across China including Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. 

One social sports mini program on WeChat has launched a particular column for people to sign up for the game. On October 23, dozens of spots were available in Beijing, Xi'an and Chengdu and some 40 people signed up for a Halloween-themed event in Beijing's Chaoyang Park. 

Bao Jun, a 33-year-old who recently played the game in Beijing's Haidian district, told the Global Times that the game evoked his childhood memories.

"I had a lot of fun while running two kilometers that night. It's an opportunity to make new friends and relieve work pressure," said Bao. 

Chen, an organizer in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang Province, said the game has gained instant popularity in Hangzhou around the National Day holidays. 

"Selecting a proper spot is key to ensure enjoyment of the game and safety. Being able to socialize while doing exercise in a fun way is appealing to many young people. It's a new pastime after work or study," said Chen. 

Compared with frisbee and flag football, the game is not competitive and is widely accessible. Whether one is a "cat" or a "mouse," the game allows participants to run a lot and socialize with teammates while discussing strategies to win the game, which gives participants a sense of accomplishment.

Social tool

Humans are "social animals," and people's study, work and entertainment are often group-based. Playing "cat and mouse" is innate to human nature, according to Ding Daoshi, an internet analyst. 

In the post-pandemic time, it's one of the examples of people releasing their pent-up social emotional demands, just like the rebound of tourism industry. In essence, this is a social game, said Ding. 

Nie Xiaojing, a psychologist with The Fourth People's Hospital of Chengdu in Sichuan Province, said that the game is an escape from the real life. 

When people are engaged in this game, there is no pressure. It doesn't matter whether you win or lose. 

The sporty nature of the game is also different from regular exercises. With goals to achieve in the game, it allows participants to exercise while having fun. In addition, the social aspect is particularly important. Participants have to stick together, which is an important interpersonal link and provides a sense of belonging. 

"When you try to complete a task together, the interpersonal relationships will be promoted through verbal, physical and emotional connection," said Nie.

The game went viral across the country because it is well known to the public and does not require any technical training. In addition, the adult participants experience a cognitive contrast as it is perceived to be a children's game. Without professional requirements, the set up cost of the game is quite low, according to the social sports mini program.

However, it remains a question whether the craze will survive the upcoming winter when it's too cold to play such a game outdoors, especially in northern China.

"The number of participants is likely to drop in winter. But we are trying to enrich the game with new elements. I believe the game will come back stronger in spring," said the organizer Chen.

The Inter-Civilizational Communication and Global Development Forumkicked offin Beijing on Tuesday, attractingaround 150 experts from more than 30 countries. 

The three-day event, hosted by the Party School of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), takes"tradition of civilization and paths to modernization" as its theme.Politicians, entrepreneurs, think tank experts, scholars, culturalambassadorsand diplomatic envoysfrom China and abroad have gathered togetherto discuss issues concerning communication among civilizations and global development.

“The purpose of hosting this forum is to establish an international exchange platform for various parties to participate and converse with each other, contributing wisdom and strength to promote the exchange and mutual learning of civilizations among nations and to build a community with a shared future for humanity,” said Xie Chuntao,vice president of the Party School of the Central Committee of theCPC.

Dilma Rousseff, president of the New Development Bank and who gave a speech at the opening ceremony, noted that frank and respectful dialogue between different civilizations and countries will promote consensus and cooperation. She added that it is a guiding principle that the world needs to systematically follow.

“The rich diversity of human civilizations can no longer be dismissive. The different objectives and development models followed by different nations cannot be ignored.  It is not possible for a multicultural world to be forced to choose a single path. Often, they are looking with a single view of democracy, which actually leads to the weakening of democracies in many countries,” she said, commenting on the significance of the forum.

Herta Daubler-Gmelin, former German justice minister, pointed out that besides cooperation in the field of economics and politics, people-to-people cooperation in fields such as academia is very crucial.

“We can do more. We can do better. This means information, as well as transparency in communication. And the recognition that every civilization contains dynamic elements. It’s not frozen. It can open itself to converse with others,” she said.

China's State Council Information Office released a white paper titledA Global Community of Shared Future: China's Proposals and Actionsin September. John L. Thornton, chair emeritus of The Brookings Institution and Co-Chair of the Asia Society, quoted the white paper, pointing out that the most pressing task is to find a guiding beacon for the sustainable development of human civilization.

“There is no more important topic than the one we will be discussing this morning. I think of it as discussing the world we wish to be in, the world we wish to create for ourselves, our children, our grandchildren, and all future generations,” said Thornton.

He also applauded for the Global Civilization Initiative and Global Initiative. “The aspiration China has is admirable. If it can be achieved, it will be a step forward for mankind, for the world,” Thornton told the Global Times.

Three sub-forums on civilizational communication between China and Europe, China-Central Asia modernization development and leadership building, and China-Arab civilization exchange and modernization development, as well as a round-table discussion, will be held during this forum.

Lately some customers in Beijing were "shocked" to hear that Daoxiangcun, a store that sells everyday snacks, would no longer be listed as a laozihao, or time-honored brand. Fortunately, it turned out that it was a same-named store in Tianjin, rather than the renowned store in Beijing, that would lose the honor. 

Together with the Tianjin Daoxiangcun, 54 other Chinese time-honored brand stores would be removed from the list of Chinese old and famous brands, including Xinluchun restaurant in Beijing, Laobanzhai restaurant in Shanghai, and Guanshengyuan store in Chongqing due to long-term poor operation, bankruptcy or loss of trademarks, according to a recent notice issued by China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC). 

China's time-honored brands refer to quality products, excellent techniques or reliable services that have been passed down through generations. With distinctive regional characteristics, most of them have been widely recognized in all sectors over 100 years. In 1991, more than 1,600 businesses were conferred with this title, and in 2006 and 2011, another 1,128 enterprises were added.

According to the MOC, this move aims to improve the protection and inheritance of time-honored brands and build a long-term mechanism for their innovation development, setting well-operated ones as standards and examples for other time-honored brands.

However, some of the brands have lost their advantages due to the changing times, while their standards have fallen. 

Tianjin Daoxiangcun, established in 1988, has a reputation for selling high-priced but poor-tasting pastries. Xinluchun restaurant in Beijing used to be well-known in the 1980s for serving savory steamed buns, which some Beijingers still miss. However, after it shifted to regular dishes, its business deteriorated. 

Like customers in Beijing, Shanghai residents were also dumbfounded by the removal of the popular and familiar restaurant Laobanzhai. While some expressed regret about the change, others consented saying, "Laobanzhai's environment, services and dishes no longer deserve its status." Some moaned that "short-sighted operators have ruined the business of their ancestors."

Established in 1905, Laobanzhai restaurant serves pastry and Huaiyang cuisine, known for its light and fresh flavor and intricate cooking techniques. It was listed as a time-honored brand in 2006. 

To respond to the quality of their services, the manager admitted that a few senior staffers have retired, which "may have caused some problems. But we are trying to improve our services, and at least the quality of the food we serve is guaranteed, and the variety is still popular." 

 "Now we are striving to reexamine ourselves," the manager said.

While sifting out the unqualified, quite a number of qualified businesses have remained on the list, among which the Daoxiangcun store in Beijing is a good example. 

First established in 1895, Beijing Daoxiangcun was the first store to sell dishes from southern China, including pastry, meat and special food for traditional Chinese festivals such as moon cakes as well as frozen food. In 1993, it was listed as a time-honored brand, and in 2004, it won the title of "famous Chinese brand" due to the good quality and reputation of its food and products. 

To protect time-honored brands, the list has been increasing instead of decreasing. In August, there were 238 old and famous brands from Beijing on the list with an average age of 140 years, an increase of 15 enterprises , including a traditional Chinese medicine company. Including the Capital Automobile Group, Beijing Tongren Optometry Store and Beijing Ruizhenhou Restaurant, they are part of the eighth batch of businesses on the list and cover more diverse sectors. 

Time-honored brands do not just represent the best of the business world, they also have profound cultural significance. 

Before a brand was set up, choosing the right name was a major priority as an auspicious name carries the great expectations of the owner of the business.  

Normally, owners selected names from famous verses in ancient Chinese literary works such as Dream of Red Mansion to pray for a thriving business, or to show their political aspirations such as jianhua, meaning "building the Chinese nation." 

Some entrepreneurs in southern China named their stores with a distinctive local style. A catering business in Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu Province, located in a typical waterside building was named Caizhizhai, or "Collecting Water Lilies." It also serves various, exquisitely made pastries that have been well-received all over the country.

Besides cultural connections, these businesses also uphold customer-centered principles. For instance, each season, Beijing Daoxiangcun will promote different foods to customers and remind them of Chinese traditions. 

These time-honored brands represent the best of traditional Chinese culture. Those who have remained on the list demonstrate their success in maintaining the businesses of their ancestors, the continuity of their products and services, and the inheritance of traditional Chinese culture. Those who have vanished must learn to catch up and adapt to the changing times. In this way, they can not only preserve their brands, but also do their bit for the protection of the traditional Chinese culture. 

The Hangzhou Asian Games was full of bright and impressive sports victories of participants. Among them, the national team of Uzbekistan won 71 medals - 22 gold, 18 silver, and 31 bronze medals - entering the top 5 of Asian countries and regions.

In recent years, Uzbekistan has consolidated the image of a country with outstanding athletes - chess players, boxers, judoists, weightlifters and the like. At the Asian Games in Hangzhou, the audience witnessed the appearance of Uzbek sports stars in boxing, taekwondo, athletics, fencing, rowing, etc.

Observers noted that this was the result of the development of sports in the country. An effective system of training professional athletes, coaches, medical staff and judges has been created in Uzbekistan, a spokesperson of the Uzbek Embassy in Beijing told the Global Times. The implementation of these goals in every way contributes to the wide promotion of a healthy lifestyle, the education of comprehensively developed youth, and the further development of physical culture and sports.

Measures for the development of physical culture and sports are defined in the Development Strategy of the New Uzbekistan for 2022-2026. In 2022, expenses allocated for the development of sports in Uzbekistan increased five times from 2017, according to the embassy.

One hundred and eighteen large sports facilities have been put into operation in the country and 110 more facilities have been reconstructed. Thanks to the sports infrastructure, Uzbekistan has become a venue for major international competitions, including the World and Asian championships in boxing, taekwondo, freestyle wrestling, fencing and other sports. Preparations are underway for the Asian Youth Games in 2025.

A healthy lifestyle is widely approved among young people in the country, and mass sports are provided. Uzbek athletes, achieving victories at prestigious international competitions including the Hangzhou Asian Games, demonstrate the high sports potential of Uzbekistan. The results achieved by athletes in Hangzhou vividly present Uzbekistan to the sports community of the world as a country where sports are developing at an accelerated pace, the spokesperson told the Global Times.

Argentine President Alberto Fernandez visited the Memorial of the Communist Party of China (CPC)'s First National Congress in downtown Shanghai, on October 15, before he attended the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing.

Staffers at the memorial shared stories of how the young CPC pioneers founded the Party a century ago with Fernandez during his visit. At the hall in the memorial, Fernandez took photos of the full-body bronze statues of the 13 delegates of the CPC's first National Congress.

According to the memorial's staffers, Fernandez carefully listened to the docent's introduction and periodically asked questions. He inquired about the statue of Li Hanjun, who was one of the 13 delegates and the site's owner at that time. The site of the CPC's first National Congress was originally a traditional Shanghai-style "shikumen" apartment. 

"The memorial's display and presentation are very well done," praised Fernandez.

Argentine Ambassador to China Sabino Vaca Narvaja also accompanied the Argentine President on the Sunday visit. 

During the visit to the memorial, Narvaja shared that his Chinese name "Niu Wangdao" came from a renowned Chinese translator Chen Wangdao, who was the first person to translate The Communist Manifesto into Chinese in 1920. Shanghai was the first stop on Fernandez's China tour.

China has assumed the rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council for November and sees promoting a cease-fire in the Israel-Palestine conflict as a "top priority," said Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the UN, as the number of dead has passed 10,000 for both sides since October 7, with 9,000 in the Gaza Strip.

"It is imperative to promote a cease-fire and halt the fighting, prevent further civilian casualties, prevent a larger-scale humanitarian disaster and prevent the conflict from spilling over," Ambassador Zhang Jun said during a news briefing on the work of China's presidency of the UN Security Council on Wednesday local time.

The latest Israel-Palestine war has quickly become the deadliest and most destructive of the five wars fought since Hamas controlled the Gaza Strip in 2007, the AP reported. Since this conflict began, nearly 9,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and the West Bank, and 1,400 in Israel.

With Israel's ground operations continuing and the conflict further intensifying, the death toll will keep rising.

Chinese analysts said that due to the different stances held by the US and other members of the UN Security Council on a cease-fire, it is very difficult to see a breakthrough in adopting UN resolutions, as the US will keep using its veto power to defend Israel's "right of self-defense," which means Israeli military forces will continue their bombardments and attacks against Gaza.

Wang Jin, an associate professor at the Institute of Middle Eastern Studies of Northwest University, told the Global Times on Thursday that the president of the UN Security Council has the duty to speak on behalf of the Security Council when the members reach consensus, and host formal and informal meetings of the council.

It seems symbolic but it can also play a constructive role, for instance, "agenda setting," Wang said.

China will work with other members of the Security Council to keep promoting peace and negotiation, and will make efforts to build humanitarian corridors to link Gaza and the outside world.

Meaningful efforts

Responding to a question about how hopeful he was in being able to break the present deadlock among Security Council members and adopt a text on the situation in Gaza, Zhang said: "That's a question we are all asking ourselves, and that I am asking my colleagues. It's not just our moral duty, it's our legal duty."

However, any text that is adopted must be important as well as meaningful, and it must send a strong message to the relevant parties about a cease-fire and abiding by international law, Zhang said. While this message did not pose a problem to many council members, it did to certain ones. However, faced with the calls of civilians, children and mothers in Gaza, the Chinese delegation would not give up, the ambassador said.

The Chinese delegation will continue to work toward calling for a cease-fire, ensuring the protection of civilians, and preventing a further deterioration of tensions, as well as a humanitarian catastrophe, Zhang said, and China would focus on "meaningful action" along the lines of the General Assembly resolution.

In the October 27 resolution Zhang referred to, the US, Israel and 12 other countries voted against it, while 121, including China, Russia, France and most UN members, voted in favor and 44 abstained. The text of the resolution sent a clear message on a cease-fire, protection of civilians and the provision of humanitarian assistance.

The US has used Israel's "right of self-defense" as a pretext to veto the draft resolution for a cease-fire in the UN Security Council. Ma Xiaolin, senior professor and dean of the Institute for Studies on the Mediterranean Rim at Zhejiang International Studies University, told the Global Times on Thursday that any resolution to be passed in the future should have clear restrictions to prevent Israel from abusing its "right of self-defense," when many people killed in Gaza were innocent civilians like women and children.

Analysts explained that Israel's mind-set is that seeking revenge and eliminating Hamas are much more important than preventing civilian casualties, and civilian deaths in Gaza should be blamed on Hamas and not Israel, because when Israel invokes its "right of self-defense," it's hard to avoid "collateral damage."

However, the majority of the international community thinks differently, because it has nothing to do with "self-defense" when Israeli forces avenge the deaths of 1,400 Israelis with the lives of 9,000 Palestinians, most of whom innocent civilians.

Only when the US, a permanent member in the Security Council with veto power, changes its mind and starts to act like a responsible country can the UN Security Council conclude with a binding resolution that can effectively bring about a ceasefire in Gaza, said experts.

The Security Council in November will also consider issues including Syria, Yemen and Bosnia and Herzegovina; take action on the UN Assistance Mission in the Sudan, the UN Mission in the Central African Republic, and the extension of the authorization of sanctions measures for Somalia; and hold its annual regular dialogue with the commissioner of Peacekeeping Police, according to Zhang at the news briefing.

The presidency of the Security Council rotates among the 15 member states of the council monthly. China last held the rotating presidency in August 2022.