ALGIERS, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- China will organize the best Winter Olympics, said President of the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA), Mustapha Berraf, in an interview with Xinhua.

Mustapha Berraf who was elected President of the ANOCA for a second term in 2018, indicated that "the participation of Africa in the Beijing 2022 games will be symbolic and a challenge at the same time regarding the low number of qualified athletes. Yet, Africans are both proud and glad to be present in Beijing 2022."

Berraf hailed the long and quality experience that China enjoys in terms of organizing big events, saying "I remember how amazed I was when I attended the Olympic Games of 2008 in Beijing, and I'm certain that the Winter Games which will kick off on February 4 will be the best once again."

Berraf further reiterated the support of ANOCA to Beijing amid threats of some Western countries not sending officials to Beijing 2022.

"As President of the ANOCA and a member at the International Olympic Committee (IOC) I reaffirm that politics should be kept away from sports," said Berraf.

"China is going to organize the biggest sports event in the world, and all the parties that are making political pressure on Beijing should know that these games are relating to young athletes, joy and performance, and have nothing to do with politics, as it is mentioned in the Olympic Charter," he said.

"The ANOCA, that I chair, was among the first international associations which endorsed the Winter Olympics Beijing 2022 through an official message to Chinese Olympic Committee at the time that some politically manipulated parties tried to hinder the organization of the games on the pretext of lack of time and other baseless political reasons. I'd say that China has the most experienced and skilled personnel in terms of the organization of great events, and I'm confident that the organization of the Winter Olympics next month will be the best ever," he added.

ANOCA is an international organization that unites the 54 National Olympic Committees of Africa. It is currently headquartered in Abuja, Nigeria.

The ANOCA aims at providing young athletes with the conditions for success and promoting Olympic ideals and values in Africa, in addition to taking part in the fight against doping, corruption, violence and pandemics. Enditem

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