The hosts for this coming Spring Festival Gala on China Central Television (CCTV) were unveiled on Monday on CCTV’s microblog.

    Veteran hosts Zhu Jun, Dong Qing, Bi Fujian, Li Sisi, Kang Hui, Sa Beining, Zhu Xun and Nigermaidi Zechman will preside over the show.

    Zhu, who has hosted the show 18 times since 1997, is regarded as a staple of the annual show. His opposite, Dong, has returned from the United States this year to join the hosting team. She has appeared on the show for the past nine years and took part in several magic shows during past episodes. A popular host of CCTV’s talent show “Star Avenue,” Bi will host the show for a fourth time. Li, 29, the youngest host on the team, has hosted the show for the past three years. Sa, who was once rumored to be actress Zhang Ziyi’s boyfriend, will be joining the gala for his sixth year. Zhu, who has hosted the show twice, will return to the stage after being absent for three years.

    Kang and Zechman are two new additions to the show. Kang is an anchor on CCTV news and is the second anchor to join the gala after Ouyang Xiadan. Zechman, a Uygur variety show host, promises to bring changes to the annual gala.

    Late in January, singers David Tao and Karen Mok, actors Zhang Fengyi, Zhu Yawen, Tong Dawei and his wife Guan Yue were all confirmed as some of the celebrity guests who will perform on stage.

    CCTV said it’s making rights available to foreign broadcasters for the first time, and plans to promote the Feb. 18 show on social media.

    This year’s show will be broadcasted in several languages, including English, Hindi, Arabic, Portuguese and German, under agreements with 24 foreign media outlets, said Ma Runsheng, general manager of CHNPEC, the CCTV-owned agency which deals with its copyright.

    Ma said popular clips from past shows — including the best moments of traditional Chinese opera — will be encapsulated to promote the gala on YouTube, Google Plus and Twitter.(Tan Yifan)