Chinese Consul General Gao Zhansheng was invited to a China-US 'Friendly Fencing Team Match' on June 22, 2012 at Olympic Club City Clubhouse,
"When I was a boy, I was one of the kids who often wielded wooden swords and fenced against one another, pretending to be a Chinese Master Swordsman." Consul General Gao began by recalling his colorful boyhood. "I believed then, and I still believe today, that one of the brightest and most exciting talents a person can possess is the ability to sword fight".
"The USA-China Olympic Men's Foil Camp provides a great opportunity to help our fencers to train together, learn from each other, and progress together. To me, the meaning of this event goes far beyond sports itself. It is a powerful communicator between our athletes. It is the heart-to-heart and mind-to-mind contact between our people, particularly between our youth, that helps deepen our mutual trust, understanding and friendship. The better we know each other, the broader the support will be for the continued growth of the relationship between our two great nations." He said.
He did not forget to wish "both the Chinese and American fencers greater success at the coming London Olympic Games" at the end.
British Ambassador to the United States Sir Peter Westmacott and British Consul General in San Francisco Priya Guha also shared their understanding on the meaning of the event and gave their best wishes to the approaching London Olympics.
The event, also called 'Pre‐London 2012 Olympic Games fencing match and demonstration between the US Olympic, and Chinese Olympic Men's Foil Fencing Teams", is jointly presented by The Bay Area Sports Organizing Committee (BASOC), The Olympic Club and the Northern California Olympians Association, as part of the USA-China Olympic Men's Foil Camp held in San Francisco June 15‐25.
