Prince Willem Alexander of the NetherlandsPrince Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands spoke highly about Beijing Olympics opening ceremony in an interview with People's Daily Online reporter Xuefei Chen during the annual World Water Week which is going on in Stockholm 17-23 August.
The Prince is a member of the International Olympic Committee and Chair of UN Secretary General's Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation.
"I was also impressed with both the sporting performances and the atmosphere I witnessed at the Olympics. Everywhere you go, you can feel the competitors' spirit and enthusiasm. They all have their hearts set on a medal – preferably gold of course! That passion drives the participants, but it also unites them, creating an atmosphere of common understanding and harmony," said the Prince.
Reporter: What was your impression about Beijing Olympics opening ceremony since you were there in person?
Prince: I am an IOC member, so I am in a fortunate position to be able to follow the Olympic movement in general and participated in the IOC meeting in Beijing and then attended the opening ceremony which was incredible. We had expected a lot. We being the world, but I think that what your country and the city of Beijing and the organizing committee performed for us was a lot more than what we even could imagine in our dreams. Maybe too much for us because it went from one absolute top performance to the next absolute top performance that we were still digesting the previous one. It was so well organized and incredible among volunteers working there. It was absolutely fantastic.
By People's Daily Online
