For the past 20 years, a Chinese company operating in Ethiopia has partnered with the country's running legend Haile Gebrselassie to organize a relay race in Addis Ababa that benefits local communities.
Launched in 2004 and organized by China First Highway Engineering Company, a subsidiary of China Communications Construction Company (CCCC), this annual event has become one of Ethiopia's most prominent sporting competitions, aiming to raise awareness of traffic safety rules and strengthen China-Ethiopia ties.
Haile Gebrselassie, considered one of the greatest distance runners in history, was one of the promoters and sponsors of the relay race project.
Born in 1973, Haile Gebrselassie won two Olympic gold medals in the 10,000 meters. After the 2004 Athens Olympics, he gradually shifted his focus to the marathon. Over his 18-year career, he set 27 world records. He announced his retirement from competitive athletics in 2010.
"You see, what we are doing through this race, it is more than a race. OK, the race is one thing to participate in, many participants. For us, what is important the elite athletes who represent Ethiopia in the future. That is really, really, very useful. Now, many the youngest have a chance. Many of them don't have a chance to run abroad, outside Ethiopia. But here they have CCCC to organize this road relay [race]," he said.
More than 40,000 people from all walks of life in Ethiopia have joined the race. Gebrselassie sees it as a potential bridge between China and Ethiopia in sports, particularly in long-distance running.
"I went for my first world championship in Stuttgart, Germany. In that year, the Chinese won the 1,500, 5,000, 10,000 meters [races]. One of my plans is to bring the Chinese to train here in the future. Please tell them, the Chinese athletes, to come. The Chinese athletics federation, they know Ethiopia. It's a good place for training," he said.
China and African countries have enjoyed strong exchanges in sports like table tennis, martial arts, and basketball since the 1950s. Together, they have built over 80 large sporting venues with a combined capacity of three million seats across the continent, according to the Chinese Ministry of Commerce.
Chinese enterprise launches relay race with Ethiopian running legend to enhances bilateral friendship
Peace talks on the settlement of the Russia-Ukraine conflict require equality, autonomous negotiators and trust, said Belarusian Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin on Friday, on the sidelines of the 11th Beijing Xiangshan Forum, which was held from Thursday to Saturday.
Khrenin talked about the military relations between Belarus and China, and the Ukraine issue.
Before attending the second plenary session of the forum, Khrenin said he hoped to expound Belarus' views and positions on the international situation in an exclusive interview with China Central Television (CCTV).
"I hope to expound our views and position on the increasingly complex situation, globally on the whole or just about Belarus. I want to expound our views on how the international community develops and how all parties seek common ground," he said.
Noting that China and Belarus have strengthened military cooperation since they established diplomatic ties 32 years ago, Khrenin said he was deeply impressed with the "Eagle Assault 2024" joint exercise between the two countries in July this year.
"I noticed some details in the exercise, and what's the most important is that the Chinese and Belarusian servicemen in one group and one operation didn't need any translator but could understand each other. It shows that our armies share tacit understanding, which is very important," he said.
Khrenin also recalled the moment that the guard of honor of the Chinese People's Liberation Army participated in the parade marking the 80th anniversary of Belarus' liberation from Nazi invaders.
"I thank Chinese leaders for dispatching troops to Belarus on the occasion of such an important festival. The Belarusian people warmly welcomed them just like greeting their family members," he said.
Khrenin also explained why Belarus has decided to establish a system against unmanned aerial vehicles.
"The Ukraine crisis has shown how modes of operation and forms of war are changing, so we are in full swing to work in this direction because we know such weapons may target us too," he said.
With the Ukraine crisis entering its third year, Khrenin put forward three conditions for resolving the Russia-Ukraine conflict through peace talks.
"It is a pity that we haven't seen any sign of the easing of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, but we can see that it is not Ukraine's independent decision. Of course, the main beneficiary in the conflict is the West, especially the United States who does not want to lose its hegemony. However, they don't understand that the current world has become multipolar, so it is always possible to resolve conflict through peace talks. Meanwhile, rigid conditions are needed to conduct such negotiations today. One of the important conditions is equality, the second is the autonomy of negotiators, which Ukraine doesn't have yet, and the third is trust," he said.
Initiated in 2006, the Beijing Xiangshan Forum is a high-level security and defense forum in the Asia-Pacific region with significant international influence.
Peace talks on Russia-Ukraine conflict need equality, autonomous negotiators, trust: Belarusian defense minister
