While thousands of young athletes are busy preparing for their competitions just days away from the start of the 2nd Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing, a man from Beijing is getting ready for a whole different sport.

Tian Longquan is a pin collector who will be introducing participants and local residents to the art of Olympic pin trading. The hobby is a tradition that occurs at every Olympic Games with collectors eagerly hunting down newly-issued pins.

Tian started collecting pins at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games when he was employed to provide technical assistance in stadiums, and noticed people trading in the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest.

"They didn't understand each other's language but they both enjoyed the pleasure brought by pin trading. It was a way of communicating without language," he said.

Today, Tian has more than 20,000 pins in his collection, all a different display of culture, tradition and landmarks from different countries. He can't name a favourite, but is especially proud of his "500 Day Countdown to Beijing" collection. The special edition set features 24 pieces of red and gold pins attached to a poster highlighting Beijing's landmarks. The pinnacle of the collection is one which celebrates the opening ceremony and is made from a piece of scrap metal from the Bird's Nest.

In Nanjing, about 2,000 pins have been issued to celebrate the Youth Olympic Games (YOG). The new pins feature food, streets and landmarks around the city. Tian is especially excited when he finds pins featuring some of Nanjing's ancient architecture.

With 204 countries and regions represented there will be an equal number of pins issued by National Olympic Commitees (NOC) and carried only by their athletes and officials.

Tian said his goal was to find at least 150 different NOC pins but said they were more difficult to obtain because "you don't know how many athletes a country might send, it might only be one, so it might be hard to find the one athlete with pins."

The pins from small island countries were also quite valuable, he added.

Tian said anyone who wanted to begin trading pins could simply walk up to someone wearing multiple pins and ask if they wanted to trade with one they already owned.

"The process of exchanging pins reminds people of the ancient way of trading without currency. Both parties gain the pleasure of trade without spending money," he said.

Tian feels that pin trading is an integral part of the YOG.

"It's the same with the spirit of the sports. In pin trading, you also have goals and must work hard to achieve them. You're not allowed to give up and that is in line with sportsmanship. It teaches the young players not to give up," he said.

"During this process, people can gain friendships and that's also what the athletes need," Tian added.

The official Olympic Pin Trading Centre is located at the Mendon Historic Site, in building No. 132, at the junction of the Gutong Lane and Jian zi Lane, next to the officially-licensed Nanjing 2014 merchandise store. Endit

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