This Day, That Year

Item from March 6, 1993, in China Daily: The "Queen of Diving", Gao Min, donated 66,666 yuan to the Beijing 2000 Olympic Games Bid Committee on Thursday to show her support for the city's effort to host the 2000 Olympiad. Wu Shaozu, China's sports minister and executive chairman of the committee, accepts Gao's gesture with glee. The figure"6" in Chinese means "smoothness" and "plain sailing".

The 11-member Olympic Inquiry Commission arrives in Beijing today for a four-day tour of the capital to assess the city's bid to host the 2000 Games. The officials fly in from Sydney, one of Beijing's main rivals.

This week, the official slogan - "A More Open China Awaits the 2000 Olympics" - has sprung up on billboards and banners throughout the city ... The city has already launched a series of affiliated projects and more infrastructure is planned.