ADDIS ABABA， April 19 (Xinhua) -- The 2016 G20 summit， which will be held under the Chinese Presidency in Hangzhou of China in September， has closer ties with the development of developing countries in general， and of Africa in particular， has noted Zhang Jun， Economic Director General at the Foreign Ministry of China.


The director general was speaking on Tuesday about China's preparation for the G20 summit to members of the permanent representatives committee (PRC) of the African Union (AU) at the AU Headquarters in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa.


Zhang said the 2016 G20 summit， which is due to be held from Sept.4 to 5 in Hangzhou， is the most important diplomatic event of China this year， drawing great attention from the international community.


"G20 is a platform not only for its members， but also for the whole international community as its agenda focuses on the most protruding and significant issues of the world economy links closely to the common interests of all countries， including African countries."


Stating that China is working hard for deliverables in Hangzhou G20 summit， Zhang said the preparation for the summit is on the right track.


"It's our duty-bound mission to address African friends the overall plan of the G20 Hangzhou summit as well as the progress of the preparatory work， enabling its more and better reflection of African countries' voice，" said the director general.


"Collective actions will be taken by the G20 to support developing countries， intending to enhance coordination and cooperation and take concrete measures in infrastructure， investment， food security and nutrition， human resource development， finance， industrialization， trade and investment， energy， anti-corruption as well as employment，" he said.


"On the other hand， the national actions taken by the G20 members to implement the 2030 agenda domestically will show the leading role of the G20 in this regard，" he added.


He also noted that China encourages the G20 to cooperate on supporting industrialization in Africa and least developed countries (LDCs).


He reiterated that the G20 Hangzhou Summit would be held under the theme， "Towards an Innovative， Invigorated， Interconnected and Inclusive World Economy，" as announced by President Xi Jinping of China last year in Antalya， Turkey.


China attaches much importance to the preparatory work of the summit， he said， adding， President Xi Jinping himself is closely watching the activities in the preparation for the summit.


He also stated that China is working hard for deliverables in G20 Hangzhou Summit focusing on four key priorities including， "innovation for growth"， "more effective global economic and financial governance"， "robust international trade and investment"， and "inclusive and interconnected development".


Reiterating that the world is still facing some severe challenges， Zhang said G20 Hangzhou summit is expected to find the right strategies tackling ongoing economic challenges， show the direction of future development， restore vigor and vitality of world economy， and promote global development cooperation.


Britain's Prince William said here on Monday that he likes to see more Chinese players in action in the English Premier League (EPL).


During Monday's meeting with President Xi Jinping Air VaporMax Flyknit Homme Pas Cher , William asked about Xi's interest in football and said he hoped to see more Chinese play in the English first-flight league.


Chinese first landed on EPL in 2002 when Sun Jihai joined Manchester City and Li Tie, now a Chinese national team coach, made it to Everton. They were followed by Dong Fangzhuo and Zheng Zhi, current China captain.


Xi, an avid fan of football, told William that China would like to learn the game from world top teams including England.


China has taken steps to raise its depth and strength in the world's most popular game, including a bold move by the Ministry of Education which has named football a compulsory part of the national curriculum.


China's central reform group, chaired by Xi, approved a sweeping football reform plan last Friday.


The Chinese president said China had cooperated with Britain in football in different ways, including a cooperation deal signed in 2013 between the Chinese Super League and EPL


Xi added that he expected William to continue to promote sports exchange and cooperation between the two countries.


HELSINKI, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) -- Eirik Brandsdal and Marit Bjoergen handed Norwey a golden double in the men's and women's sprints as the cross country World Cup season started in Ruka, Finland, on Saturday.


Brandsdal won the men's 1.4-kilometer sprint final in a time of 2 minutes 34.84 seconds to claim his first World Cup victory since 2012.


Petter Northug was 0.46 seconds behind in second place, while Sondre Turvoll Fossli came third.


Bjoergen, a six-time Olympic gold medalist and multi-world champion, won in a time of 2 minutes 58.33 seconds, 0.45 seconds ahead of Slovenian Katja Visnar. Another Norwegian, Maiken Caspersen Falla, rounded out the podium.