Port Adelaide will once again be the major partner of China’s representative team in the AFL International Cup, having originally supported the team in 2014 in one of the first steps of its China Engagement Strategy.
That strategy this year culminated in the playing of the historic first game for premiership points in Shanghai.
The club's head of China and Government Relations Andrew Hunter said the relationship between China and Port Adelaide will be further solidified by the IC17 partnership.
“Port Adelaide has a long association with China’s Australian Rules Representative Team, ‘Team China’. We have been the main sponsor since 2014, when we first hosted them in Adelaide," Mr Hunter said.
“It is great to see them back in Adelaide for the 2017 International Cup.
“So much has happened since they were last here. There has been an annual exchange between ‘Team China’ and our Aboriginal AFL Academy side, which toured China in 2015 and 2016. And their captain, Chen Shaoliang, is now a member of the Port Adelaide family, having been with us for over a year.
“Our relationship with ‘Team China’ is the foundation of our China Engagement project, which is designed to bring together the people, businesses and governments of Australia and China.”
The AFL International Cup brings national teams from across the globe to compete in Melbourne every three years.
The team will be captained by Port Adelaide’s own SANFL reserves player Chen Shaoliang, who recently returned from an ACL injury in the Great Southern Football League.
He is set to make his SANFL Reserves debut in the coming weeks.
“It’s an honour to be captain of ‘Team China’ this year and to play with my countrymen in Melbourne," Chen said.
“Port Adelaide is doing some really great work to connect AFL into China and we are very excited about training with the Power and at the club as part of our training for IC17.”
‘Team China’, which is also sponsored by Port Adelaide’s Open to the World Major Partner Ausgold, arrived in Adelaide on Thursday afternoon before a training session with the Power at Adelaide Oval tomorrow morning.
They will then participate in Port Adelaide’s Multicultural Gala Day at Alberton Oval on Friday before attending game day events at the Power-Saints match on Saturday.
They then travel to Melbourne the following Thursday ahead of the start of IC17 on Saturday 5 August.
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