QINGDAO mayor, Xia Geng, was honored by the Asian Sailing Federation on Jan. 15 for his contribution to the promotion of sailing in Asia.

    Qingdao has been involved in international sailing exchange in recent years, hosting the regattas for the 2008 Olympics and the Paralympics.

    An organizer, Xia proposed and promoted the development of Qingdao as an international sailing capital.

    He shared the award with Huang Simian, vice chairman of the International Olympic Committee.

    Qingdao established the Qingdao Olympic Sailing City Development Association in May last year. The association hosted a series of international activities including the 2010 Qingdao International Sailing Week and the Summit Forum of Sailing City Mayors and International Olympic Sailing Sports to further promote the development of sailing in Qingdao.(Martin Li, Sun Fei)