POKHARA, Nepal, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- An international mountain cross-country competition was held in Nepal's Pokhara, drawing approximately 600 contestants from Nepal, China, and other countries and regions.

The event, organized under the theme of "race for common prosperity," involved teams, individuals, students, and a "love run," where all contributions will be donated to the Jajarkot and Rukum West districts in western Nepal, which were hit by a 6.4-magnitude earthquake earlier this month.

The 20 teams competed in a mix of running (22km), cycling (17km), and boating (1km), with around 100 Chinese participants arriving in Pokhara on a charter flight.

Addressing the opening ceremony, Chinese Ambassador to Nepal Chen Song noted that the first Nepal-China dragon boat race festival was held in June in Pokhara, Nepal's second-largest city and a popular tourist destination.

As the two sides joined hands once again to host the cross-country competition, it is believed to further enhance people-to-people and cultural exchanges, and cooperation between the two countries in various fields, promote the development of sports and tourism in Nepal, and help China and Nepal achieve common prosperity and development, Chen said.

Both the dragon boat race festival and the cross-country competition are promoting tourism in Pokhara and strengthening people-to-people relations between Nepal and China, said Surendra Raj Pandey, chief minister of Gandaki Province, where Pokhara is located.

"We're very much interested in further cooperating with the Chinese government to take the tourism sector in this province to a new height," he added.

On the same day, a running event was held in Beijing, China's capital, in synchronization with the Pokhara cross-country competition. Enditem

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