Five international students from Tongji University — representing Morocco, Canada, Pakistan, and Bangladesh — attended the 9th "YouYi Home" Cultural Salon on the afternoon of April 22 at the Yangpu campus of Shanghai University of Sport. The event was co-hosted by the Shanghai Public Diplomacy Association and the university under the theme "Sports Activities and Traditional Chinese Culture."

Zhou Hanmin, a Standing Committee Member of the CPPCC and President of the Shanghai Public Diplomacy Association, and Mao Lijuan, President of Shanghai University of Sport, spoke at the event, highlighting how sports can bring people together across cultures.

The program included a rhythmic skipping rope performance, an introduction to traditional Chinese sports culture, and a visit to the Chinese Martial Arts Museum. There were also hands-on activities: traditional fitness exercises and an AI-powered table tennis session — a vivid example of how traditional sports and modern technology can merge.

Through this immersive experience, the Tongji students gained a deeper appreciation of traditional Chinese sports culture while also discovering common ground with sports cultures from their own countries. They noted that the salon offered a valuable platform for international students to engage in public diplomacy and share Chinese culture with others. Looking ahead, they expressed their commitment to continuing to serve as bridges between Chinese and global cultures.

Source: Tongji University