Beijing Gears up for Homestretch of Olympic Bid

Beijing has regarded the bid for the 2008 Olympic Games as a race which enters the final stretch.

"As we know, how well an athlete sprints in the final stretch has direct bearing with his result,"Jiang Xiaoyu, spokesman of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Bidding Committee, said on Tuesday.

"Beijing face an uphill battle in the homestretch. How well we perform is of great significance to the bid,"Jiang added.

Beijing, so far still regarded as a front-runner in the Olympic race, has showed no sign of relaxation following the inspection by the evaluation commission of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) late in February.

The bidders have flung themselves into preparing for the presentation in Moscow in July when the IOC will make its final decision on the 2008 host. Paris, Toronto, Osaka and Istanbul are also in the running for the top sporting prize.

"The presentation is the most crucial battle in the Olympic bid. We will make extraordinary efforts to make sure a wonderful performance in Moscow,"said Jiang.

As the bidders embark on their preparation for the Moscow presentation, Beijing will continue their bidding promotion, highlighted by nationwide activities on April 4 which mark the one-hundred-day countdown to the Moscow vote.

Jiang also said that Beijing will do more in promoting Beijing internationally, a city which less than half of the IOC members have paid visits to. And most of them paid their visits to the city at least five or six years ago.

Jiang expressed his wishes that the international community could have a closer look at what is happening in Beijing since China started its reform and opening-up drive late in the 1970s.

"I wish foreign friends could see Beijing's resolve and effective measures in environmental protection, see Beijing residents live a better life and enjoy an increasingly sound system of democracy and legality, see the strong support from the Chinese government, see the cultural charm of the 3000-year-old city, see how the Chinese is so sports-minded......,"said Jiang.

"After witnessing the changes to Beijing, they will believe that to award the 2008 Games to Beijing will be the most valuable and the most commendable choice in terms of the dissemination and development of the Olympic ideal,"he said.






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