CHEN TAI-CHENG, a FISU Executive Committee member, remembers the moment when Shenzhen was named the host city of the 26th Universiade in Turin in January.
“It’s a great honor for all Chinese people, and I’m fully proud of Shenzhen,” said Chen, who is also a professor of Fu Jen Catholic University in Taiwan Province.
“Although it’s my first time being to Shenzhen, I’m fully confident on the city’s capacity in holding the best Universiade,” Chen said.
He said he was shocked at seeing how modern Shenzhen was: “This well developed city is beyond my imagination.”
“Many Taiwanese businessmen who invested on the mainland recommend me to visit Shenzhen, saying that it’s a city developed overnight. Now, I’m here. Seeing is believing,” he said. “That’s where my confidence on Shenzhen comes.”
Chen had been to dozens of cities on the mainland since 1990, including metropolises such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.
“In the past, people will spontaneously think of Beijing or Shanghai when large-scale sports events were held on the mainland. But Shenzhen changed this with its successful bid on the 2011 Universiade,” he said.
Chen said he expected many international sports competitions would be staged in South China, following the Universiade and the Asian Games to be held in the city and Guangzhou respectively.
“I attended more than 10 Universiades in the past two decades, the one held in Beijing in 2001 is the most successful in FISU’s history. The mainland has a lot of experience in holding large-scale sports events. With Beijing’s outstanding experience, I believed Shenzhen can do further as a young and energetic city,” Chen said. (Tan Xiaomi, Shenzhen Daily)