The good and the bad
China Daily's Ma Chao talked with five persons from different walks of life to gauge what people in Beijing felt about the legacy of the 2008 Olympic Games. Below are excerpts from their interview:
Wang Hui, telecom worker at Hujialou Telephone Bureau and a resident of Chaoyang district
The Olympics has changed Beijing's appearance drastically. The magnificent venues have become new landmarks. Several structures built in the run-up to the Games such as Beijing airport's Terminal 3 and the new Beijing South railway station are awe-inspiring, too. These marvels make the city look prettier.
But public transport has seen the greatest improvement. The rapid bus transit system has been introduced, new subway lines have been built and new buses have replaced old ones.
Tong Zhiwei, Peking University official and former Beijing Games volunteer
The Olympics gave a chance to many student who hadn't taken part even in minor social work to be part of a major event with thousands of other participants. It gave them a chance to look and experience beyond the campus and broaden their vision, too. Many former volunteers think and behave in a more positive way today.
Ma Xin, PhD candidate at the University of Arizona, US, and former Olympic volunteer
The trainings before the Games helped me learn teamwork skills and etiquette, and taught me the importance of helping the physically challenged. I got the chance to talk with foreign visitors and spectators, and learned not only language skills but also how to communicate with people from other cultural backgrounds.
Volunteer spirit is a great legacy of the Olympics. For many who didn't understand why taking honorary work is important, the Olympics were a good example. Many former volunteers are continuing their good work.
Jiang Yi, Sports Illustrated (Chinese Edition) reporter
Before the Games, many people feared the extravagant sport venues might become like white elephants. Unfortunately, their fear has become reality. The Bird's Nest, for instance, now serves only as a tourist attraction or occasionally a venue for concerts. The Italian Super Cup from August 8 will be the first sport event to be held there in almost one year. The Water Cube has suffered a similar fate, only that nobody knows when it will host the next swimming or diving event.
The condition of Wukesong Basketball Gymnasium is even worse. Before the Games, its operating rights had been contracted to the NBA and the AEG, a US sport venue operator. One year after the Games, however, the gymnasium has not even opened once.
The Games have not helped professionalize China's sport system either. On the contrary, it has hurt it to a certain extent.
For example, the 2007-08 basketball season was reduced to three months to make way for the training of the national basketball team. After the Games, CBA leaders are even talking about the benefits of the juguo system (using the country's resources to seek glory in competitive sports).
The juguo system has been criticized for long because it focuses on Olympic gold and neglects professional and people's sports. That's why a reform in the system seems impossible in the near future.
Zhang Chuanwen, Beijing News journalist
The Olympics might inspire children and the youth to take up sports. But it has not been able to encourage adults to spend more time on sport. Despite a few marvelous stadiums and gymnasiums, it is still not easy to find sport venues for ordinary people, and the charges for those that exist are too high.
I didn't exercise much before the Games, nor do I after it.
(China Daily 08/05/2009 page9)
