THE first batch of the 2025 Chinese Youth Pickleball People-to-People Cultural Exchange Delegation to the United States is on a cultural exchange tour to the United States from Aug. 24 to Sept. 5, following a pre-departure ceremony held at the Shenzhen Nanshan Foreign Languages School (Group) Wenhua School on Aug. 21. The delegation's visit comes at the invitation of the 2025 U.S. Youth Pickleball Cultural Exchange Tour in China delegation, marking another chapter in youth diplomacy between the two nations. The ceremony was attended by officials including Yu Changxue, director of the China Center for International People-to-People Exchange under the Ministry of Education, and Hu Yumin, counselor of the Department of North American and Oceanian Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, alongside 50 teachers, students, and parents from eight schools in Nanshan District. The event commenced with a short documentary film about the U.S. Youth Pickleball Cultural Exchange Tour in China, setting the tone for the upcoming journey. Yu expressed high expectations for the delegation, emphasizing three key objectives: "to actively learn and enhance personal qualities; to use pickleball to forge friendships and serve as friendly ambassadors; and to strictly abide by discipline while showcasing China’s image through personal stories.” Hu highlighted the unique nature of this exchange, noting that this is an exchange and friendship journey mediated by pickleball. He hoped that the students could become inheritors of China-U.S. friendship and promoters of peace, building bridges between the two nations. Xia Lei, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Nanshan District Committee and deputy district mayor of Nanshan District, recalled the successful reception of American students the previous year, mentioning how Nanshan’s “technological, educational, and cultural characteristics amazed American teachers and students.” He encouraged the delegation to use pickleball as a link to showcase the graceful demeanor of Chinese youth and tell Nanshan’s story well. The ceremony featured a formal flag presentation to the visiting delegation. Wang Keyu, a third-grade student from the Shenzhen Shekou Yucai Education Group Yucai No. 3 Middle School, led the oath-taking ceremony, with all students joining in unison. Wang Tianqin, a student representative from the Shenzhen Nanshan Foreign Languages School (Group) Wenhua School, shared his plans to present a brush-written piece titled “Hard Work Pays Off” to, and share “the innovative spirit behind Shenzhen Speed” with, American students. Teacher representative Liu Chao from Nantou Middle School emphasized that pickleball “symbolizes vitality and the future,” encouraging students to make friends with confident smiles. The ceremony concluded with a congratulatory video message from Jeffrey Sullivan, director of Systemwide Athletics for Montgomery County Public Schools in the U.S. state of Maryland.(Zhang Yu) | 