China came back from two goals down to beat South Korea 3-2 in the final of AFC Women's Asian Cup two days ago, reclaiming the trophythey had last won in 2006. The Chinese women's football team landed in Shanghai last night, and, after COVID-19 checks, they left for Suzhou today to undergo a three-week quarantine.
Ahead of the arrival, Suzhou had already made arragements for them. Each team member would receive a doll of Bing Dwen Dwen, one of the Beijing 2022 mascots that has went viral recently, along with their favorite food -- hotpot.
Staffers in Suzhou have already given the dolls to team members. Photo@WeChat ID: gusuwb
The bus carrying the team arrived in Suzhou this noon. Despite the cold weather local residents gathered around their hotel to give them a hero's welcome.
The Gate of the Orient was dressed in red last night, showing a special slogan for the "Steel Roses" (nickname for Chinese women's football team).
The quarantine hotel for the team is situated near the beautiful Taihu Lake. In fact, it is not the first time they have stayed in this hotel -- they were in quarantine here last year following the Olympic football qualifiers. To welcome their arrival, the hotel has made special preparations and been carefully decorated.
The hotel has made special preparations and been carefully decorated to ensure a comfortable and safe quarantine for Chinese women's football team.
Football has gained in popularity in Suzhou as Chinese women's and men's football teams came to the city for trainingin the recent years.
At the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020, Chinese women's football team assembled in Suzhou and then flew to Australia for Olympic football qualifiers.
On April 13, 2021, Chinese women's team beat South Korea 4-3 in Suzhou and won the last ticket to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Next year, Suzhou will host the AFC Asian Cup China 2023, the continent's top-ranked and most influential football tournament, together with other nine domestic cities, namely Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Chongqing, Chengdu, Xi'an, Dalian, Qingdao and Xiamen.
Rendering of Kunshan Football Stadium, venue for AFC Asian Cup China 2023 in Suzhou
