Beijing Olympics 2008

Hundreds of Chinese students in Japan signed their names on three flags on Saturday to extend their support for the Beijing Olympic Games.
The campaign, initiated by the Chinese Students in Japan Friendship Association, plans to collect over 10,000 signatures of Chinese students and scholars in Japan.
At the opening ceremony of the campaign held in the Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology, the Chinese students set up banners promoting Olympic spirits and the Beijing Olympics slogans such as “One World, One Dream.”
“Through the campaign, we want to spread the Olympic spirits and the notion of peace, and to call on the people who support the Beijing Olympics to join together,” said Zhang Bi, secretary general of the Chinese Students Association in Japan.
“We also want to tell Japanese students that the Olympic Games is not only for China, but the whole world and the entire humankind,” Zhang told Xinhua.
During the Olympic torch relay in Japan’s Nagano city on April 26, the three flags, with the color of red, yellow and blue respectively, will be extended to spectators for their signatures.
The flags will then be presented to the Organizing Committee of the Beijing Olympic Games, said Li Guangzhe, chairman of the association.

from: chinadaily.com.cn

NEW DELHI - Seventy torchbearers are set to carry the Beijing Olympic flame here on Thursday for the 11th leg of its global journey.
The 70 torchbearers will cover a distance of just 2.5 kilometers from Rashtrapati Bhavan to India Gate starting from the 4 p.m. local time.
The torchbearers include sportspersons, Bollywood stars and politicians, according to Suresh Kalmadi, the president of Indian Olympic Committee.
The country’s top current and former athletes, including sprint stars Anju Bobby George, PT Usha, ace tennis star Leander Paes, shooters Manavjit Singh and Abhinav Bindra, boxer Akhil Kumar and hockey player Dhanraj Pillay, will be part of the run.
Actors Saif Ali Khan, Amir Khan, Sagarika Ghatge of “Chak De India” fame and Sarod player Ayan Ali Khan will also be seen in action.
Sachin Tendulkar, who was supposed to carry the flames, has pulled out at the last minute.
“He is not well and he has also an Indian Premier League captain’s meeting to attend. But he has shown his solidarity for the Olympic movement,” Kalmadi said on Wednesday.
Out of 70 torchbearers, 47 have been chosen by India and five by the BOCOG, the Beijing Organizing Committee of Olympic Games, while Olympic presenting partners have selected 19 runners.
Kalmadi expects for a great relay in New Dehli. “The entire world is looking to India and the expectation is that the torch relay will be one of the greatest shows here,” said Kalmadi.
“We are hopeful that we will be able to live up to the expectations of the world community.”
“We do not want to see a repeat of what happened in Paris and London. It is a sacred torch and its safety is our responsibility,” Kalmadi told a press conference.
“We are not afraid of any movement. They can have the movement anywhere else. We just want the torch relay to be safe. The safety of the torch is our responsibility and we are hopeful that the relay will go on well without any disruption,” added he.

from: xinhuanet.com

The International Olympic Committee said on Thursday that Beijing is right on track to deliver a superb Olympic Games in August.
“We can again report that the commission has seen that BOCOG’s operations are absolutely right on track,” Hein Verbruggen, chairman of the IOC coordination commission, told reporters as the commission wrapped its last inspection tour of the Chinese capital.
“We believe that the coming August will be able to give a superb organization to the athletes.
“All the organizations have been progressing according to the plan,” he added.
Verbruggen said the IOC coordination commission had examined Beijing’s preparatory work in 44 areas and received satisfactory feedbacks.
“We were very satisfied with the assurance we received in a number of areas … media services, internet access and live broadcast, where some concerns exist,” he said.
“There is every reason to believe that we will see here a gold-medal performance in August, also superb organization of the Olympic Games.”
Verbruggen reiterated that the IOC was a sporting organization and not a political one, and would not get involved in political issues.
“The games have been drawn into issues that do not necessarily have a link with the operations of the games. It’s the truth. We are all aware that the international community is discussing these topics,” he said.
Verbruggen also rejected the conclusions by an Amnesty International report this week that awarding the Olympic Games to China had made human rights worse.
“To go that far to say the Games contributed to a worsening situation in human rights, I would call blatantly untrue,” said Verbruggen.
“It is something very difficult to prove for them but we can easily prove that bringing the Games here has let to improvements.”
Wang Wei, executive vice president of the Beijing Olympics Organizing Committee (BOCOG), echoed these remarks.
“The Chinese people now enjoy great freedom of speech, and people can comment on and criticize the government’s work,” he said. “The Olympic Games is an opportunity for china to further open up and develop… and also will contribute to the improvement of human rights courses.”
Commenting on threats by some EU politicians recently of boycotting the opening ceremony of the Beijing Games, Verbruggen said that decision to boycott the opening ceremony or the Olympics should be made by athletes and not by politicians.
“I have very little admiration for politicians that come here to sign big business contracts and three or four months later say ‘ perhaps I won’t come to the opening ceremony’,” he said.
“The athletes have more than enough information to make up their own minds. It’s not up to some politicians making cheap use of the sport at the same time as signing big business contracts.”

from: xinhuanet.com 

The city of San Francisco has made public the Beijing Olympic torch route which will travel about 6 miles (9.6 kilometers) along San Francisco’s waterfront, it was reported on Wednesday.
In discussing the details of the route, mayor Garvin Newsom asked activist groups to remember that the Olympics are not about politics but about the performance of athletes and “the spirit of unity and the things that unite us,” according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
City leaders, including Newsom, have expressed concerns over the past few weeks that releasing details of the torch route would jeopardize security of the event by encouraging people who want to disrupt or stop the relay.
The torch relay will start with a ceremony at McCovey Cove, travel along the Embarcadero past Fisherman’s Wharf and briefly through the Marina District, and head back along the Embarcadero to Justin Herman Plaza. A closing ceremony is scheduled to take place at the plaza.
The event will start at 1 p.m., and it will take the torch about an hour and a half to traverse the route. More than 80 people from across North America have been selected to carry the flame. Their names have not been made known.

from: xinhuanet.com 

Most people in France believe their country should attend the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, according to a poll by Ifop published in L’Equipe. 60 per cent of respondents think France should not boycott the games to protest China’s human rights record and recent events in Tibet.
In 1949, the People’s Republic of China was established as a one-party state. In the 1980s, the ruling Communist Party of China (ZGD) loosened a series of authoritarian restrictions and allowed private enterprise for the first time in decades. The country currently has one of the world’s fastest growing economies, becoming a global exporter and a very attractive venue for foreign investors.
China’s human rights record has remained a concern. Several campaigners claim the communist regime continues to torture and execute people. The country’s rule over Tibet has also been a point of contention.
Earlier this month, Reporters Without Borders called on heads of state and governments to boycott the opening ceremonies of this year’s Olympic Games as a way to underline China’s poor treatment of human rights. Former French prime minister Dominique de Villepin agrees with the idea, and has called on French president Nicolas Sarkozy to second it. 54 per cent of respondents would agree with French leaders boycotting the opening ceremony of the games.
On Mar. 25, French swimmer Alain Bernard discussed his views, saying, “Boycott the opening ceremony, why not? It would be a huge message from the politicians. Boycotting is a very delicate question. As a sportsman, we will have an important role to play because what we are going to produce there, our results, will attract the eyes of the world. After that side of things, boycotting becomes a political decision. It is very delicate for us.”
Also on Mar. 25, Daniel Bilalian, director of sports at France Televisions, said the network may boycott coverage of the Beijing Olympics if China bans the broadcast of footage from demonstrations against the games.

Polling Data

Due to China’s human rights record and recent events in Tibet, there have been some discussions about boycotting the Beijing 2008 Olympics. Should France boycott the Beijing 2008 Olympics?

Yes 39%
No 60%
Not sure 1%

If France takes part in the Beijing 2008 Olympics, do you think French leaders should boycott the opening ceremony?

Yes 54%
No 45%
Not sure 1%

Source: Ifop / L’Equipe
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,007 French adults, conducted on Mar. 20 and Mar. 21, 2008. No margin of error was provided.
from: angus-reid.com