In 2001, the news that Beijing will host the 2008 Summer Olympics Games was greeted with wild celebration throughout China where independent Gallup polls showed 94 percent of the people were behind Beijing's bid, highest among all the past Olympic hosts. During those days, almost everyone knew the popular slogan “Count me in for the Beijing Olympics”.
Chinese people need, more urgently than any other people in the world, to come with an opportunity to improve their lives and the Olympics are exactly the once in a blue moon chance.
In 2007, “Welcome the Olympics, improve manners and foster new attitudes” was in full swing and the slogan of “I participate, I contribute and I enjoy” became ubiquitous in Beijing to advocate civilization and etiquette. People from the four corners have been warmly reacting to the campaigns of “Beginning with myself and with minor things to make our city more civilized”, “Observe good manners as a traveler to Beijing” and “Present a smiling Beijing, volunteer for the Olympics and make joint efforts to create a harmonious society”. Those slogans truly convey Chinese citizens’ fully participation in the Beijing Olympics.
Li Shufen, a 96-year-old paper-cut artist, has been cutting paper for the Olympics since Beijing won the bid in 2001. With Fuwa, Confucius and Chinese seal as the main theme; she has amazingly completed more than 10,000 paper cuts. “I’ll give all of them to the Olympic delegations to spread the Chinese culture across the world.” Li said passionately.
Up till now, the number of people who submitted entries for the Beijing Olympic volunteer program soared to unprecedented heights, stood at more than 1.3 million, and about 100 thousand among them will work in the Olympic sports venue, providing information, emergency aid and translation services.
Seven years ago, when the second round of votes of the election for the 2008 Olympics were about to begin, He Zhenliang, with his trade-mark sincerity, said to the IOC officials : “ No matter what choice you make, the decision will be written into the annals of history, but only one choice will create history.”
Now China has made it. The zenith of a new chapter of history is set to approach.
By Hu Zhicheng
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