The 19th Asian Games will be held in Hangzhou, China from September 2023 to October 9, 23. As the third Asian Games to be held in China, in addition to the many highlights of competitive competitions, digital empowerment to promote the Asian Games and the diversified development of sports culture also present new era characteristics.

Breakdancing and esports "into Asia"

This year's Asian Games has 40 major events, 61 sub-events and 481 sub-events. The 40 events, including 31 Olympic and 9 non-Olympic events, will produce 481 gold medals.

It is worth mentioning that under the premise of keeping the 40 major sports unchanged, the Hangzhou Asian Games has added two competitions, breakdancing and e-sports, to attract the attention and participation of more young audiences.

The addition of breakdancing has enriched the cultural connotation and characteristics of this Asian Games. The breakdancing competition will be held on October 10-6 at the Gongshu Canal Sports Park Gymnasium, with one event for men and one for women, resulting in a total of two gold medals.

Breakdancing emphasizes body control and flexibility, and dancers demonstrate visual impact through unique movements and techniques, characterized by freedom, individuality and innovation, which are highly compatible with the lifestyle of young people. The addition of breakdancing not only injects more cultural elements and vitality into the Asian Games, but also helps to promote the diversified development of sports culture.

As an emerging sport, the Hangzhou Asian Games esports competition will be held from September 9 to October 24, resulting in a total of 10 gold medals, namely League of Legends, Honor of Kings (Asian Games version), Peace Elite (Asian Games version), Dota 2, Dream Three Kingdoms 7, Street Fighter 2 and FIFA Online 2. In addition to Street Fighter 5, the Chinese team will compete in the remaining 4 games.

IOC President Bach has previously said: "Will esports one day be considered for inclusion in the Olympic Games? The answer is yes. It depends on when the day comes. ”

Digital empowerment drives the Asian Games

The "digital empowerment" Asian Games is a highlight of this year's Hangzhou Asian Games. It is reported that the number of registered people in the first one-stop digital viewing service platform launched by the Hangzhou Asian Organizing Committee - Smart Asian Games One-stop Pass has exceeded 100 million. Without downloading separately, you can enter the platform through Alipay to participate in the Asian Games from various aspects such as "food, accommodation, travel, travel, shopping, and entertainment".

The Hangzhou Asian Organizing Committee also launched the "Asian Games Nails", an integrated digital platform for large-scale sports events. Due to the wide range of cities involved in the preparation and hosting of the Hangzhou Asian Games, as well as the many competition venues and staff, it was difficult to coordinate across regions, departments and levels. The Asian Games nails integrate online communication, personnel management, event training, protocol management, traffic organization and other service functions, and at the same time access to the event integrated command platform and various special command platforms, effectively improving the office efficiency of the organizing committee. With the help of Asian Games nails, for the first time in the history of the Asian Games, "one mobile phone is held in the palm of your hand".

"Intelligence" is also reflected in all aspects of venue construction. For example, the first intelligent venue project of the Hangzhou Asian Games - the Huanglong Intelligent Venue Project. Through this system, the venue's energy consumption, real-time status, crowd flow and other data can be collected in real time, and the staff can grasp the situation of various indicators of the venue in time.

According to reports, more than ten venues, including Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center Stadium, Deqing Sports Center Gymnasium, and Hangzhou E-sports Center, have been equipped with intelligent systems, with the help of digital technologies such as the Internet of Things, to improve the efficiency of event operation, enrich the presentation and dissemination of events, and provide quality services for athletes, spectators and tourists.

In addition, in line with the concept of "green, intelligent, thrifty and civilized", the venues of the Hangzhou Asian Games will be used to serve the public after the event.

A feast of cultural exchange outside the arena

The Hangzhou Asian Games is not only a sports event, but also a cultural exchange conference. From slogans, mascots, badges, torches, Asian Games villages and other aspects, Hangzhou charm is highlighted everywhere, helping to show the charm of traditional Chinese culture.

The theme slogan of this year's Asian Games is "Heart to Heart, @未来". @是全球互联网通用符号, it fits the characteristics of Hangzhou Internet City. "Heart to heart" means that people from all over the world mingle on the big stage of the Asian Games; "@未来" holds the good wishes of facing the future and building a community with a shared future for mankind.

Speaking of the mascot of this year's Asian Games "Jiangnan Yi", the name comes from the famous phrase "Jiangnan Yi, the most remembered is Hangzhou" by the Tang Dynasty poet Bai Juyi, and the three mascots are called "Qiang", "Chenchen" and "Lotus", representing the World Heritage Liangzhu Ancient City Site, Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal and West Lake, integrating Hangzhou's history, humanities, natural ecology and innovation genes.

"Flame" is the name of the torch of the Hangzhou Asian Games, and the design idea is derived from the Liangzhu culture that empirically verifies the history of 5,000 years of Chinese civilization. The torch shape "grows" from bottom to top, and the overall silhouette curve is like holding firewood, represented by jade, with humanistic history and mountain customs as the main trunk, symbolizing the passing of the torch of Chinese civilization.

The emblem of the Hangzhou Asian Games "Chaoyong", its main graphic is composed of six elements: fan, Qiantang River, Qianjiang tide head, track, Internet symbol and the sun graphic symbolizing the Olympic Council of Asia, showing the natural characteristics of the landscape city of Hangzhou, Zhejiang and the spiritual temperament of Zhejiang's sons and daughters standing bravely at the head of the tide.

During the event, the Asian Games Village not only provided accommodation and service functions for athletes and entourage, but also undertook the task of showcasing urban culture. In the Asian Games Village, Chinese cultural elements such as celadon, silk umbrellas, lanterns, seal carving, fan making, silk can be seen everywhere, and there is also an interactive experience area. During the event, the organizing committee will organize 5 experience activities every day to let foreign friends have closer contact and deeper understanding of local culture.

Yangcheng Evening News reporter Zhan Shuzhen