China's tennis facilities, high-level tournaments to drive success of Chinese players: Djokovic

China's great tennis venues and facilities, coupled with the frequent holding of high-level tennis tournaments in the country, will undoubtedly contribute to the success of Chinese players, said Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic.

The 37-year-old tennis player claimed gold in the men's singles tournament at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games in France this year, bringing his fifth Olympic journey to a perfect end.

So far, Djokovic has won 99 singles titles, including the four Grand Slam tournaments -- the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and the U.S. Open, as well as the Olympic Games. With the accomplishment, Djokovic completed a career Golden Slam.

Djokovic believes that he is still playing at a high level and will be more selective in events.

For him, the 2024 Rolex Shanghai Masters is a long-expected competition.

"And I always enjoy playing in China and enjoy coming here. [I] won my first masters cup here in 2008 and since then I won another four titles of the Rolex Masters 1000 event here in Shanghai. So I'm gonna give my best, obviously this year, to try to go as far as possible in the tournament and fight for the trophy," said Djokovic.

When it comes to the growth and progress of Chinese tennis players such as Zheng Qinwen and Zhang Zhizhen, Djokovic noted that Chinese players are willing to put in a lot of efforts and he hopes to see more outstanding Chinese players in the future.

"Tennis players they're very focused, they want to train, they put a lot of effort. I wish to see definitely more Chinese players, particularly on the men's side, doing better and better. Their future will be bright," he said.

In 2023, the number of tennis courts in China ranked second in the world, according to iiMedia Research, a third-party data mining and analysis agency for the global new economic industry.

It is estimated that the scale of China's tennis industry will grow to 36.9 billion yuan (about 5.23 billion U.S. dollars) in 2024, a year-on-year increase of 15 percent, and the number of people playing tennis in China will reach 23.81 million, making up 25.3 percent of the total in the world, ranking first globally.

"In some of the most beautiful stadiums that we have in tennis are here in China. For several months, every single week, high level tournaments [are] played all over the country. So that will definitely contribute to the success of the Chinese players," said the tennis player.

Perfect infrastructure and the hot atmosphere for events will create infinite possibilities to China's tennis industry, according to Djokovic.

China's tennis facilities, high-level tournaments to drive success of Chinese players: Djokovic

China's tennis facilities, high-level tournaments to drive success of Chinese players: Djokovic

Macao has been emerging as a global hub for conventions and exhibitions in recent years by exploring the enormous opportunities in the sector, driving the region to advance its economic diversification and embrace a brighter future.

Macao has received many awards this year, such as the Best Convention City (Asia) and the Best BT-MICE City, showcasing the recognition for and influence of Macao's exhibition industry.

More than 1,000 electronic game enthusiasts from all over the world gathered recently in Macao to participate in a esports themed event.

Su Zhili, organizer of the event, said that Macao's rich experience in hosting large-scale events, coupled with its good infrastructure, has driven him to choose the region as an ideal destination to hold such an activity.

"Macao has held many similar large-scale events. It has rich experience, and the facilities at the venue are relatively mature, so we can start our work comfortably," said Su.

During the first three quarters of 2024, Macao held more than 1,000 conferences and exhibitions in total.

"We will invite more professional, special conferences to be held in Macao and also cultivate more exhibition brands with international influence in Macao, so as to promote Macao's exhibitions to be more market-oriented, professional, international, digital and greener from various aspects. This is our goal," said Elaine Wong, member of the Macao Commerce and Investment Promotion Institute.

In addition, multiple large exhibitions and conferences, such as the Macao International Trade and Investment fair, the Macao Franchise Expo, and the International Infrastructure Investment and Construction Forum, are held regularly in Macao.

With the introduction of a series of policies and measures to facilitate the exchanges between the mainland and Macao, as well as the construction and development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin, Macao's convention and exhibition industry will embrace more opportunities for development in the foreseeable future.

"We have such a good industrial base in the Greater Bay Area. The mode of 'Convention and Exhibition + Industry' not only integrates the industries of Macao, but also the industries of the Greater Bay Area. In addition, Macao actively integrates into the national development and plays a role in the Belt and Road. Why are we so confident in Macao's convention and exhibition sector? Because it is backed by the motherland, and the country gives Macao great support," said Alan Ho, chairman of the Macao Association of Convention, Exhibition and Tourism Sectors.

Macao emerges as global hub for conventions and exhibitions, driving economic diversification and international recognition