Athletes complete stage one of Tour of Hainan cycling race

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The 16th Tour of Hainan International Road Cycling Race kicked off in Qionghai City in South China's Hainan Province on Monday, with more than 140 athletes from 20 international teams completed the stage one on the same day. 

The race runs from Monday to Friday, and has a total of five stages, spanning over 854 kilometers. 

The starting and ending points are set in Qionghai and Sanya City, passsing through various cities and counties and iconic areas such as the round-the-island tourist highway and the ring road surrounding the Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park.

With a total length of over 90 kilometers, the first stage is the shortest flat stage of the race, which includes an intermediate sprint point and a category four climbing point. 

After intense competition, Malucelli Matteo from the XDS Astana Team claimed victory, while Norman Vahtra from the China Glory - Mentech Continental Cycling Team and Alexander Salby from LiNing Star secured the second and third places, respectively.

"The team did a really strong work during the day. And I take the first victory of the year and the first victory here in the island of Hainan. So I am really happy and I enjoy the moment," said Matteo. 

Founded in 2006, the race has grown to become one of the highest-level and most influential road cycling races in Asia.

"The Tour of Hainan is a UCI 2.pro-level race. We have some very high-level riders participating in the competitions. The route includes flat, climbing, and downhill sections. I think it's very exciting and intense. It's a great way to promote cycling culture in Hainan," said Su Haoyu from the XDS Astana Team.

Athletes complete stage one of Tour of Hainan cycling race

The Langqi passenger terminal in Fuzhou of east China's Fujian Province officially commenced a new departure tax refund initiative for travelers heading on the "mini three links" route on Tuesday, with streamlined measures boosting the efficiency of tax refunds and speeding up customs clearance procedures.

The "mini three links" refers to direct trade, postal and transport services launched in 2001 between Fujian Province and the Taiwan-administered Kinmen and Matsu islands. It serves as a vital, convenient cross-strait passage for personnel exchanges and economic and trade interactions between the Chinese mainland and the Taiwan region.

At the heart of the upgraded service is an optimized procedure dubbed the "one document, one bag, one code" process, a simple and streamlined model designed to shorten clearance time for outbound passengers.

Under this framework, travelers who make purchases at designated pilot tax refund stores can have their qualified goods consolidated into a single sealed bag, with all corresponding tax refund information integrated into a unique QR code printed on the tax refund application form.

When departing via the Langqi passenger terminal, on-site customs officers only need to scan the QR code to retrieve and verify the details relating to the applicant's tax refund application. Travelers can then get quick customs clearance once the information is confirmed to be accurate, with no requirement to open their sealed shopping bags for repeated inspections.

Departure tax refund services launched at "mini three links" port in Fuzhou