Dream comes true

"One world, One dream". A national 100-year-old dream of China is coming true with the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympics to be held tonight.

On the Yellow Sea, about 882 km southeast of Beijing, Qingdao, the co-host city of the Beijing Olympics, will see 400 competitors from 62 countries and regions vie for medals in 11 sailing events.

With races kicking off tomorrow, Xia Geng, mayor of Qingdao and chairperson of the Olympic Sailing Committee (Qingdao), told China Daily: "Although we are shouldering great responsibility, we are confident in fulfilling our commitment to the world that we will exert great effort to hold a unique and well-run Olympic sailing competition."

The more than 8 million residents in the city feel equally proud to have the Olympic sailing competition held in their hometown.

"Nothing could be better than holding the world's highest-level sporting games in our city," Liu Jicheng, a photographer, told China Daily.

Since July 13, 2001, when Beijing was awarded the right to host the 2008 Olympic Games and Qingdao sealed the opportunity to host the sailing events of the Games, Qingdao has prepared wholeheartedly for the Olympic gala.

Great moments were recorded in Olympic history:

May 25, 2004: The Qingdao International Sailing Center breaks ground.

December 28, 2005: Ahead of schedule, Qingdao completes building its executive and management centers for the sailing center.

April 3 to 8, 2006: Qingdao makes an impressive debut as a stopover in the 2005-06 Clipper Round the World Race.

August 2006 and 2007: Two test events of the Olympic sailing competition are successfully held in Qingdao.

April 2008: The Olympic village, the final project in the sailing center, is completed.

Seven years' preparation, together with the experience accumulated in holding sailing events, will all add up to a successful Olympic sailing competition.

Two international sailing regattas have proven that the sailing center, a recipient of more than 3 billion yuan of investment, to be the best venue in the world.

Work in areas including city operations, medical care and traffic has been greatly improved.

With an investment of more than 80 billion yuan in improving hardware such as highways and environmentally friendly facilities, Qingdao is presenting the world its impressive assets.

By living up to values of the 2008 Olympics - green, hi-tech and people-oriented - Qingdao people will show the world their progress, strength and confidence in hosting successful sailing events.

Boasting long-lasting friendships with 21 cities around the world, Qingdao is becoming increasingly globalized with more than 60 international conferences and expositions held here every year.

The Olympics has become an engine driving the city's economic development. Over the past five years, the city's economy saw an annual increase of 16 percent, with utilized capital surpassing $17 billion and the total imports and exports volume breaking through $100 billion.

Gross income generated by the expenditure of more than 30 million tourists hit 40 billion yuan last year.

The throughput of containers realized by the city's port was also among the world's top 10 last year.

(China Daily 08/08/2008 page60)