CMG-donated Olympic sculpture inaugurated in French city

An inauguration ceremony for a commemorative sculpture donated by China Media Group (CMG) to the French National Olympic and Sports Committee and the launch ceremony of the Olympic Peace Park were held in French city of Noisy-le-Grand on Friday.

CMG President Shen Haixiong sent a congratulatory message to the event. China's ambassador to France, the Chief Cultural Officer of the French National Olympic Committee and the Mayor of Noisy-le-Grand attended the ceremony and delivered speeches.

Shen Haixiong said in his congratulatory message that this friendship gift vividly pictures China and France standing together through thick and thin and moving forward hand in hand, and interprets the lofty ideal of "peace, friendship and progress" of the Olympic movement. He expressed the hope that people from all walks of life in China and France continue to use the Olympics as a bond, work together to promote exchanges and dialogs between civilizations, and contribute new and greater strength to building a community with a shared future for mankind.

Lu Shaye, Chinese Ambassador to France, said in his speech that culture and sports are important elements and bonds of people-to-people exchanges. The sculpture conveys the message of unity, peace and friendship by blending sports with culture, and portrays China and France's pursuit of the Olympic spirit and expectation to world peace.

Stephane Hatot, administrator of the French National Olympic and Sports Committee in charge of Olympic culture, said that this sculpture fully demonstrates the three core values of the Olympics: excellence, respect and friendship. This year marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relationship between France and China. Such an artistic piece could exactly serve as a representative of celebrating this great friendship, showing that both France and China are advocates and promoters of the Olympic spirit, he said.

Brigitte Marsigny, mayor of Noisy-le-Grand, said in her speech that this magnificent sculpture is a bridge between different cultures, symbolizing the common expectations of people from different countries for world peace. As the mayor of Noisy-le-Grand, she is honored to welcome this sculpture to be permanently settled in Villa Cathala.

"It's a beautiful city and we are very proud, as part of the French-Chinese friendship, to have this cultural work with us. I find them superb and then I think that it will please the residents of the city a lot," said Marsigny in an interview with CMG after the event.

The sculpture Tong Zhou Gong Du, literally "ferrying in the same boat," echoes the Olympic spirit. It depicts an Olympic goddess wearing an olive wreath on her head and holding a dove of peace in her right hand, and Pierre de Coubertin, founder of the modern Olympics, holding the Ode to Sport in his left hand.

In the center of the sculpture are the five Olympic rings jointly held up by the two figures, and the base of the sculpture is a boat decorated with a Chinese dragon and a Gallic rooster.

Created by Huang Jian, International Olympic Committee's Olympic art ambassador and renowned sculptor, this sculpture integrates cultural symbols of both China and France, standing for the vibrant friendship between the two countries and the spirit of the Olympics. It is placed in the garden of Villa Cathala, one of the city's landmarks.

CMG-donated Olympic sculpture inaugurated in French city

Chinese cities, towns and villages are putting on dazzling light and lantern shows, staging distinctive folk customs performances, and holding festive mooncake banquets in celebration of the Mid-Autumn Festival, which falls on Tuesday.

The Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the most important festivals in Chinese culture. It falls on the 15th day of the eighth month on the Chinese lunar calendar and dates back more than a millennium. As a festival in honor of the moon and harvest, families reunite on the occasion to admire the bright full moon, light lanterns, and share the holiday pastry of mooncakes.

In the ancient city of Kaifeng of central China's Henan Province and Jinzhou City of northeast China's Liaoning Province, popular tourist attractions and landmarks are bathed in lights, promising a mesmerizing nighttime experience for local residents and tourists alike.

Beijing's famous Beihai Park, a public park and former imperial garden, is staging performances themed around bianzhong, or Chinese chime bells which has a history of over 2,000 years.

In tourist towns and villages of Yunnan Province in the southwest, Zhejiang Province in th east and Guangdong Province in the south, lively folk and dragon dances are gathering numerous locals and tourists to join in the festivities.

Audiences are enjoying a poetry recitation show in Hefei City, east China's Anhui Province, and a symphony in Zunyi City, southwest China's Guizhou Province, respectively.

This year, Suining City in southwest China's Sichuan Province and Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in the northwest, have both prepared giant freshly made mooncakes enough to treat hundreds of people at a same time. And in a village of the southwestern Chongqing Municipality, people have prepared their own mooncakes on a flour ground from their newly harvested red sorghum.

"We are filled with the joy of harvest during the merry traditional festival. The festive mood is really nice," said Liu Ya, a local of Jiangjun Village in Chongqing's Bishan District.

Elsewhere, villages in Wuyuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province, are also celebrating their harvest of red pepper by drying them on the roofs. And another village in the eastern province of Shandong has recently held a large banquet for local households to share.

Outside the mainland, colorful lanterns are also dotting the various landmarks, streets and alleyways of Hong Kong and Macao, adding to the festive joy.

Celebrations held across China to mark traditional Mid-Autumn Festival