Chinese President Xi Jinping has kicked off his state visit to Papua New Guinea, ahead of the APEC leaders' meeting in the country's capital. Meanwhile, as the first Pacific island nation to join China's Belt and Road Initiative, Papua New Guinea is seizing every opportunity to build people-to-people exchanges. Case in point - a training center in Port Moresby is dedicated to one of China's most popular sports. As CGTN's Liu Yang shows us, table tennis is quite a hit there.

For many, training with one of the world's greatest table tennis pros is a dream come true. Zhang Yining, the sport's most dominant female throughout the 2000's, is getting set to coach Papua New Guinea's national players. The venue, the China Table Tennis College Training Center, is one of the only two such centers in the world.

ZHANG YINING FORMER OLYMPIC CHAMPION "They have a lot of enthusiasm. I think when it comes to table tennis techniques, players need a long-term coach. I think part of coaching is also pointing out player problems, and helping them make progress."

In this room full of passionate table tennis pros, they say the sport - sometimes nicknamed ping pong - is in their blood, and that they must train hard in order to win.

REA LOI PAPUA NEW GUINEA COACH "It is my privilege to have Zhang here in my country. Talking to her personally, and on behalf of our federation, this is something we have never experienced."

KOPI WINNIE PAPUA NEW GUINEA NATIONAL CHAMPION "At our ages, I am 43 years old, I studied table tennis in the 80s, but I laid off for some years till now I am trying to gain again. I would like to know more about table tennis and techniques, we want coaches from overseas to teach us the techniques to learn more."

Experts say China and PNG's mutual friendship continues to grow. They chalk it up to bilateral and one-on-one relations. Both governments appear committed to integral human development across PNG through socio-political and economic agendas.

SHAO YUPING, PRESIDENT PAPUA NEW GUINEA TABLE TENNIS FEDERATION "Everyone knows that table tennis is a national game for China, I hope I can take this opportunity to promote the sport in PNG. I always remembered, the chairman of the international table tennis federation says that 'the promotion of table tennis is what we should do'."

The training center is located in Butuka Academy, the school aided by Port Moresby's sister Chinese city, Shenzhen. The school has 52 classrooms, one modern multi-purpose hall; one standard rugby field, two basketball courts, and two volleyball courts. The new school can accommodate up to 2,700 students with high-end facilities and equipment. There are also 12 apartments for teachers.

ZHANG YINING FORMER OLYMPIC CHAMPION "I am delighted! Even though I've been retired for years, I can still take part in the development of table tennis careers. This is why we set up a second overseas base, in the hope of getting better and better."

The establishment of China Table Tennis College Training Centre in PNG will be another milestone, enhancing the good relationship between the two countries, via sports. Something to connect the hearts of the people from the far east to the south Pacific. LIU YANG, CGTN, Papua New Guinea.