Beijing's Vision for 2008
The Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games will be a unified sporting
celebration. It will be a well-organized, well-served
games with good results. This is the vision of the joint
Organizing Committee for the Beijing 2008 Olympic and
Paralympic Games.
The Beijing Organizing Committee, comprising the President
of the Chinese Olympic Committee, the President of the
Chinese Paralympic Committee, athletes, and leading members
from the Beijing Municipal Government and the Chinese
Central Government, is backed by strong government support
and assistance from the national sports federations. To
ensure the success of the Paralympic Games in 2008, government
authorities at all levels will provide active assistance
and cooperation in the areas of transportation, telecommunication,
public health, immigration, customs, quarantine, tourism,
and use of land and sports venues. The Chinese government
has undertaken to give financial support to the Paralympic
Games.
It is planned that the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games
be held about 10 days after the Closing Ceremony of the
2008 Olympic Games. Twenty of the sites for the Olympic
Games will be used for Paralympic competitions and training.
The facilities at these sites will meet all the Paralympic
Games requirements. The Paralympic Village will be the
same as the Olympic Village, and will house 7,000 residents,
including 4,000 athletes, 2,000 team officials and more
than 1,000 technical officials. Barrier-free designs will
be adopted in all the installations and other access facilities
for wheelchair users will be available.
About 60 million people in China, or 5 percent of the
population, have a disability, and the Chinese government
says that it attaches great importance to providing assistance
for people with disabilities. There are articles for assistance
and protection of persons with a disability in the Constitution
of China and more than 40 related laws, regulations and
ordinances. China has been a regular and productive participant
in disability sport and the Paralympic Games. At the Sydney
2000 Paralympic Games, the Chinese delegation competed
in six sports and
finished sixth on the medal table, with 34 gold medals.
The 2008 Paralympic Games is expected to leave a unique
legacy in promoting disability sport in China and in the
region.
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