300 Days to Beijing 2008 Paralympics

A campaign was kick-started in Beijing, China, on Sunday to promote volunteer services for the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games. Around 100 people, including volunteers, BOCOG officials, Paralympic athletes and Beijing citizens attended the ceremony. As the crowd sung "Smiling Beijing" and "Come and Join Us," BOCOG issued textbooks to volunteers and awarded name plates to the volunteer training bases for the Beijing 2008 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Paralympic athletes and volunteer applicants expressed their wishes to serve the Paralympics and to take care of persons with a disability.

At the same time in Hong Kong, the Home Affairs Bureau of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Paralympic Committee and Sports Association for the Physically Disabled jointly also held a countdown celebration, marking the launch of a series of activities to promote the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs Carrie Yau, attending the celebration, said the Government would now gradually step up its publicity efforts to promote the Beijing 2008 Olympic and Paralympic Games. These would include staging celebration activities to tie in with significant dates of the Paralympic and Olympic Games, the launching of city dress-up and publicity programmes as well as promoting the concept of "A Society for All". Ms. Yau also said the Government would seize the opportunity to increase community understanding of the sports in which athletes with a disability participate.

The Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games will take place from 6 to 17 September 2008, with around 4,000 athletes from 160 countries competing in 20 sports.