From June 1 to 5, at the invitation of Sendai Municipal Government, the sister city of Changchun, Gao Lili, Executive Deputy Secretary of the Work Commission for Offices Directly under the CPC Changchun Municipal Committee, led a sports delegation of Changchun City to participate in the 2023 Sendai International Half Marathon.

On June 4, the race was officially kicked off by Kuniko Sato, the Mayor of Sendai, and two outstanding half-marathon runners from the government officers of CPC Changchun Municipal Committee were selected to take part in the race on behalf of Changchun. With full preparation and excellent performance, they successfully completed the race and achieved outstanding results, conveying a vibrant and dynamic image of Changchun in the international event.

During the visit, the delegation attended the welcome ceremony hosted by the Sendai municipal government and called on Kuniko Sato, the mayor of Sendai. Gao Lili, the head of the delegation expressed gratitude for the opportunity to revel in the sports event with friends from all over the world in Sendai after the COVID-19. Through the race, the delegation aims to deepen mutual understanding between the people of Changchun and Sendai, enhance friendly ties, and promote deeper exchanges and cooperation in more fields. The delegation also paid a visit to Ken Sasaki, the President of Sendai Japan-China Friendship Association, conducted an exchange with the Sendai Japan-China Friendship Association and reached a consensus on the continued deepening of exchange and cooperation in sports, culture, economy and trade and other fields. Moreover, the delegation attended the Sendai International Sister Cities Exchange Meeting, where not only did they had extensive exchanges with overseas Chinese representatives in Sendai, but also had friendly interactions with athletes from the US, Mexico, South Korea and other countries. In addition, it also had a meeting with the relevant heads of Sendai International Exchange Course to agree on the exchange programme and the future direction and content of exchanges between the two sides in 2023 for the purpose of jointly promoting the cooperation in modern agriculture between Changchun and Sendai, as agreed during the recent visit of a delegation of Changchun Municipal Government to Sendai.

Since Changchun and Sendai became sister cities in 1980, to further enhance friendship and broaden channels for exchange, Changchun has been sending delegations to Sendai to proactively participate in such sports events as part of efforts to further tighten the friendly ties between the two cities, with sports exchanges as the platform as well as an opportunity. Through these activities, the channels for foreign exchange were enriched and friendly relations were established with more cities, telling Changchun's story and ultimately enhancing the international influence of Changchun.