BEIJING - With the arrival of Chinese New Year on Tuesday, the country enters the Year of the Tiger.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, has made reference to this on multiple occasions over the past weeks, inspiring the people to forge ahead with intensified efforts and courage.

In the Chinese zodiac, the tiger is the third of 12 animals that appear in a repeating cycle: rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig.

According to Chinese culture, the tiger is the king of animals, symbolizing strength, bravery and fearlessness, as the Chinese people often refer to "spirited dragon and dynamic tiger," or "soaring dragon and leaping tiger."

Combining traditional Chinese culture with changes in the global situation, Xi has cited an ancient Chinese phrase, "a tiger with wings," to underscore China's initiative in overcoming all difficulties and obstacles with redoubled strength in the new era.

"To meet the severe challenges facing humanity, we must 'add wings to the tiger' and act with the courage and strength of the tiger to overcome all obstacles on our way forward," said Xi in his address to the 2022 World Economic Forum virtual session on Jan 17.

"We must do everything necessary to clear the shadow of the pandemic and boost economic and social recovery and development, so that the sunshine of hope may light up the future of humanity," he said.

With the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics just around the corner, Xi offered his best wishes to athletes from home and abroad at a Lunar New Year gathering on Sunday, calling on them to act "like a tiger which has got wings" and achieve great success.