The countdown clock for the Hangzhou Asian Games at Wulin Square jumps to "30 days" on August 24, 2023. Residents and tourists flocked to take photos, witnessing this important milestone. Photo: VCG

 Two sports culture exhibitions have kicked off in Hangzhou on Monday to celebrate the upcoming Hangzhou Asian Games and help the public better understand the Chinese sports history.

A total of 12,417 athletes from all 45 Asian countries and regions will compete at the 19th Asian Games, which will take place in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang Province, from September 23 to October 8. It will be the third Asian multi-sport event held in China, after the 1990 Beijing Asian Games and the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games.

One exhibition, held at the Hangzhou Asian Games Museum, is dedicated to offering people insight into the history of sports in China spanning 3,000 years from the Spring and Autumn Period (770BC-476BC) to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) through 138 cultural relics. 

Some traditional Chinese sports are highlighted by the cultural relics, including hunting, archery, equestrian, dragon boat race, fishing, Weiqi (a Chinese board game publicly known as Go) and Chinese chess.

A mind sport, Weiqi will make a comeback to the Hangzhou Games, after a 13-year hiatus since its last appearance at the Guangzhou Games in 2010.

At another exhibition held at the Hangzhou National Fitness Center, more than 300 artifacts and 100 cultural relics are also on display to showcase the modern history of Chinese sports.

A staff member surnamed Wang with the Hangzhou Sports Development Center, which is organizer of the two exhibitions, told the Global Times that the exhibitions serve as a complement to the Asian Games and offer people a history lesson in Chinese sports.

"One is about ancient Chinese sports history while the other is about modern Chinese sports. The latter one features artifacts from the Beijing-based China Sports Museum. It showcases China's unique status in Asian sports and the development of Chinese sports. Various calligraphy works, paintings, sculptures and other art works collected from all over the country are also on display," said Wang, adding that both exhibitions are open to the public free of charge and will run until October 8.

Huang Jin, curator of the China Sports Museum (CSM), was present at the opening ceremony of the exhibition. He said visitors can explore and understand the history and culture of Chinese sports at the exhibition, which aims to strengthen their cultural confidence and promote Chinese culture to the world.

During the opening ceremony of the exhibition, three champion athletes, Lou Yun, Wu Peng and Yang Yu, from Hangzhou donated personal items to the CSM, including a gold medal from the 2002 Busan Asian Games and a swim cap from the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.