Cyprus announces delegation for Chengdu Universiade

NICOSIA, July 12 (Xinhua) -- Cyprus has announced a delegation of 27 members including 18 athletes for the 31st FISU World University Games to be held in Chengdu.

At a reception hosted on Wednesday for the Cypriot delegation by the Chinese Embassy, the Cyprus Sport Organization (CSO) confirmed that Cyprus will be represented by 18 athletes in five sports at the July 28-August 8 Chengdu Universiade.

"It's the 13th time Cyprus will take part in the Games, and we are expecting them with great impatience," said Soteris Adamou from CSO, the supreme sports authority of Cyprus.

As the Chengdu Universiade had been postponed twice due to the pandemic, the International University Sports Federation (FISU) raised the maximum age of participants from 25 to 27.

Additionally, the rule that only current students and those who have graduated within one year can participate was also relaxed, allowing for the participation of students who graduated in 2020, 2021 and 2022.

Cyprus's Chef de mission, President of CUSF Panos Razis, thanked the event's organizing committee and the Chinese Embassy in Cyprus for their efforts in facilitating the Cypriot delegation's upcoming trip to China.

"I would like to extend our wishes to strengthen all practical ways to collaborate even more closely with China in the field of sports, including all the educational programs and relevant conferences and events," said Razis.

At the reception, Chinese Ambassador Liu Yantao said he expected the athletes to deliver good performance and experience the vigor of the Chinese civilization during the Games as well.

"Sports is a bridge connecting the world and a shared language among the people. In this sense, World University Games is an important platform for integration of civilizations and exchanges between cultures," he said.