今天，中国国家主席习近平将抵达曼彻斯特，开始对英国国事访问的第二站行程。这是中国国家主席首次到访曼彻斯特，也是曼彻斯特各界翘首以待的一次访问，具有重要和深远的意义。

Chinese President Xi Jinping is visiting Manchester on the second leg of his State Visit to the UK. He is the first Chinese President to visit Manchester. There is much anticipation, from all sides, about the experience of President Xi in Manchester. It is therefore a State Visit of tremendous and profound significance.

曼彻斯特在中国享有盛名。它是历史名城，既目睹了工业革命的兴起，也见证了马克思主义的诞生，历史底蕴深厚。它是"红砖之城"和"足球之城"，是英国"北方经济中心"的核心城市，充满着现代活力。

Manchester is a household name in China. As a historical city, it played a core role in the rise of the British Industrial Revolution and witnessed the birth of Marxism. Today, this city is known for its cutting-edge invention of graphene and football excellence – two of the most famous football teams in the world are based here. It is also a vibrant hub of the Northern Powerhouse.

曼彻斯特人民与中国人民交往源远流长。早在1898年，来自曼彻斯特的商人立德乐第一个驾驶轮船通过三峡抵达中国重庆，揭开了与中国西部交往的序幕。在中国改革开放伊始的1986年，曼彻斯特就与中国武汉结为友好城市，树立了中英姐妹城市中的典范。英国球迷们更难忘记曾活跃在曼城足球队的中国球员孙继海，亲切地称他为"曼城的太阳"（Sun of Man City）。

The people of Manchester and the people of China have traditional ties that date back a long time. In 1898, Archibald John Little, a merchant from Manchester, was the first man to steer a steam boat more than 1,000 miles into China along the Yangtze River. This epic journey took him through the ‘Three Gorges' to reach Chongqing. That was the prelude to Manchester's ties with China's western region. In 1986, just as China introduced reform and opening-up policies, Manchester established sister city ties with China's Wuhan city on the Yangtze River. This twinning has always been an outstanding example of twinning between Chinese and British cities. A more recent, and famous story was that of Chinese footballer Sun Jihai, who played for Manchester City and who was fondly known by British fans as the "Sun of Man City".