Literature competition Zhengyuan Cup launch ceremony [Photo by Li Hanyi/provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The first Zhengyuan Cup competition in children's literature was held on Nov 3 in Longli county, Guizhou province. The competition, organized by the Royal Danish Consulate General in Chongqing, will last for two months. Competitors are required to recreate fairy tales by Hans Christian Andersen. After preliminary and semi-finals, ninety children will go on to the finals and six of them will win the final prize.

A happy child is lifted into the air during the opening ceremony [Photo by Li Hanyi/provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The competition will lead to more dialogue between Denmark and China, said Mr Lars Lund Rasmussen, Denmark's consul general in Chongqing, during the opening ceremony, "we would like to introduce Hans Andersen's stories to Chinese children and get Chinese children to learn about and visit Denmark. Also, we want to introduce Danish people to many things from China."

"The competition aims to spur interest in classic literature among children", adds Jing Yazhen, chairman of Zhengyuan Education Group, "we hope the event will encourage more parents to read with their children."

The competition is sponsored by the Education Bureau of Guiyang city, Guiyang Daily Media Group and Zhengyuan Education Group.

Li Hanyi contributed to this story