SHENYANG, China, July 18 (Xinhua) -- In July, the Pump Track Qualifier in Weihai, a coastal city in eastern China's Shandong Province, drew crowds of enthusiastic young riders.

Malta caught me off guard. I came, of course, expecting tales of the Knights of Malta (or Knights of St. John, as they’re officially known)—stone fortresses and crusader lore—and the soft lapping of ...