On Monday afternoon, excitement filled the Aurora International Sports Training Center at Shougang Park in Beijing’s Shijingshan district, as young gymnasts prepared for a highly anticipated exchange with their US peers from the Oregon Rhythmic Gymnastics & Dance Academy.

The event opened with a joint training session guided by coaches from both sides, covering posture, body waves, and apparatus manipulation.

During the performances, Chinese gymnasts presented intricate spins and balance routines infused with Eastern rhythm, while American athletes demonstrated expressive choreography, earning warm applause from the audience.

“The joint training was really fun. I wish we got a little more time with the (Chinese) gymnasts,” Marlowe Stuart, a younger dancer from the Oregon Rhythmic Gymnastics & Dance Academy, said.

“It was really cool to see other rhythmic gymnasts sharing our love and enjoyment for this sport,” Chloe Weng, another member of the US delegation, said.

Beyond athletics, the delegation experienced local intangible cultural heritage through a live demonstration of Shaolin Eight-Method Boxing performed by Shijingshan youngsters. Guided by a veteran martial arts instructor, US gymnasts practiced classic kung fu movements, gaining firsthand insight into traditional Chinese culture.

The delegation also toured the Yongding River Market near Shougang Park and iconic sites of the 2022 Winter Olympic Games, including Big Air Shougang, the world’s first ski jumping platform to be permanently preserved and used.

The US delegation was impressed by the area’s transformation from a former steel mill site into a modern cultural and entertainment hub, witnessing Beijing’s sustainable post-Olympic heritage utilization firsthand.

“It’s fun to see an area that didn’t have a lot of use to it be revived and to find new purpose and new use to it,” Robyn McManama, team leader of the delegation, said.

The US delegation was invited by the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, and the exchange was organized by its Beijing branch.

BPAFFC Vice President Jiao Yutong, Shijingshan District Deputy Mayor Zhong Mianmian, and Oregon-China Council President Ying Shuqi attended the event.