Photo: Xinhua

Beijing will host the 2027 World Athletics Championships, according to an announcement made at the 234th World Athletics Council Meeting on Thursday in Glasgow, Scotland. 

This will be the second time China's capital  hosts the international athletics body's flagship event after the first time in 2015.

Nanjing in East China's Jiangsu Province is scheduled to host the World Athletics Indoor Championships from March 21 to 23 in 2025.

World Athletics President Sebastian Coe extended his congratulations to Beijing on its successful bid to host the global athletics showpiece in 2027.

"With a population of more than 1.4 billion, China is one of the biggest sports markets in the world. It was the top performer for broadcast of the Diamond League in 2023 with a cumulative audience of 368.9 million viewers. This poses a massive opportunity to grow our sport and fan base in one of the biggest commercial markets in the world," said Coe. 

Wang Nan, World Athletics Council member and vice president of the Chinese Athletics Association (CAA), said he was grateful to World Athletics for the recognition and trust in China and Beijing. 

"The CAA will work together with the Beijing organizing committee to make every effort to prepare for the championships, ensure that the championships will be held to the highest standards, and strive to present a wonderful World Athletics Championships to make more contributions to the development of athletics in  the world," Wang said.

Liu Yu, a Beijing-based sports commentator, told the Global Times on Thursday that Beijing is poised to showcase its charm as the "city of dual Olympics."

Beijing is the first city in the world to host both the summer and winter Olympic Games. 

"Hosting the worlds in Beijing will drive the development of athletics in China, accelerating the improvement of our country's athletic competitiveness, and attracting more individuals to engage in athletics. It will also further elevate the city's global influence as an international consumption hub," Liu noted. 

A total of 41 Chinese athletes competed in 17 disciplines at the biannual athletics showpiece in Budapest, Hungary, in August 2023. However, China fell short of realizing its goal of winning two or three golds and ended up with only two bronzes. 

It was the first time in 20 years that Chinese athletes have failed to win a gold or silver at a worlds.

Absence from international competitions in recent years and a shortage of promising young athletes has sounded the alarm for Chinese athletes to gain ground on their global elite counterparts.