A Chinese weightlifting coach instructs Solomon Islands athletes at a training base in Panzhihua, Southwest China's Sichuan Province on July 16, 2023. Photo: Chen Tao/GT

Panzhihua, a small mountain city in western China, welcomed a group of special guests from the ocean recently. 

A total of 80 athletes from the Solomon Islands officially started a 90-day training program on Monday in the city in Southwest China's Sichuan Province in the hope of gaining better results during the upcoming 2023 Pacific Games with the help from professional coaches and training bases.

The 80 athletes training in China fall under seven sports: athletics, swimming, taekwondo, boxing, weightlifting, table tennis and judo. They were selected from a pool of 650 participants, constituting the largest-ever team of athletes from the Solomon Islands to train abroad, the Global Times learned from the Chinese Embassy in the Solomon Islands.

The athletes are living and training at the Hongge training base and the Miyi national training base in Panzhihua, where the climate is wet and warm the whole year, making it a hub for sports training in China.

"From the government and sports departments to our coaches, we all attach great importance to this training," Liu Hongchao, a coach from the Sichuan provincial judo team, told the Global Times. 

According to Liu, two days before the training started, in order to understand the athletes' current condition more accurately, the coaches arranged a comprehensive physical fitness assessment and specialized technical evaluation for all athletes. This assessment allowed them to gain a more precise understanding of the athletes' current status, enabling them to plan the next training sessions with greater specificity and accuracy.

"We will assist them in establishing a scientific and correct training philosophy and technical approach, utilizing the systematic training methods and tools at our disposal to enhance their specialized abilities. By employing a mutually reinforcing cycle of training and testing, we aim to facilitate rapid improvements in their performance within a span of three months," Liu said.

Tetekana Clinton, 26, is a boxer from the Solomon Islands. He started his career in 2015, hoping this could lead him to becoming an ambassador for his country in the future.

"In our country, since we lack of gyms, we can only do some basic training," he told the Global Times. "In China, it's very different, and it is a little bit difficult for us."

"My goal in the Pacific games is to become a medalist. I want to get a gold for the Solomon Islands," he said.

Isaac Pat Myrie has been training as a taekwondo athlete for eight years. 

"Our life as an athlete is simple, just training and going home. But I love doing sports. It is a pleasure for me to train here in China, under these good coaches. The basic and advanced training help us a lot. We're looking forward to more training," he said.

Yan Zhiguo, manager of the Economic Aid Dept at China Sports International Co Ltd, told the Global Times that the company, a veteran in sports aid belonging to the General Administration of Sport of China, is running the training project for the Solomon Islands athletes.

"After receiving this task, we began looking for proper training bases for the Solomon Islands athletes, and received support from local governments," Yan introduced.

"Apart from providing high-quality training to the athletes, we will also help their coaches to improve." 

Yan is confident about the outcome of the training. "Through the scientific nutritional support and systematic training provided here, they will make significant progress compared with their previous performance," Yan said, adding that in 2019, a similar project helped Samoan athletes achieve significant improvement in their performance, and this allowed Yan and his colleagues to gain valuable experience in the process.

"We also hope these kinds of projects could help foreign athletes to understand the friendliness of China and the country's development," he noted.

On Sunday, the islanders, who just arrived in China for several days, got a chance to have a look at the city and visit a local museum and a shopping mall. According to Yan, the organizer also plans to bring the athletes to visit the panda base in Chengdu, capital city of Sichuan.

The 2023 Pacific Games will kick off in November in Honiara, the capital city of the Solomon Islands. The main venue, also the country's first national sports stadium, was completed with the aid of a Chinese state-owned company.

The Solomon Islands aims to secure 100 medals, including 40 gold medals, in the upcoming Pacific Games, the Xinhua News Agency reported, quoting local sports authorities.

Chinese Ambassador to the Solomon Islands Li Ming stated during the send-off ceremony on June 30 in Honiara that the athletes from the Solomon Islands would not only receive training in their respective sports in China but also experience Chinese culture and witness China's development.

"Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the Solomon Islands, both sides have actively implemented an important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, leading to rapid development in bilateral relations and increasingly broad cooperation," he noted.

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare visited China earlier this month. In an interview with the Global Times, he said that "China is our good friend, and it can help us achieve these development goals."

The two countries established diplomatic ties on September 21, 2019. Half a month later, Sogavare paid his first visit to China, during which the Solomon Islands officially joined China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative.

Solomon Islands judo athletes train on July 16, 2023. Photo: Chen Tao/GT
 

Solomon Islands track and field athletes and their coaches train on the training base's track on July 16, 2023. Photo: Chen Tao/GT

Solomon Islands taekwondo athletes spar on July 16, 2023. Photo: Chen Tao/GT

A Solomon Islands boxer undergoes basic training on July 16, 2023. Photo: Chen Tao/GT

Solomon Islands table tennis players practice on July 16, 2023. Photo: Chen Tao/GT