REGIONAL> Development
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REGIONAL> Development
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Not only sports, but a city on show in Shenzhen
By Shen Ji (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-11-25 07:51 The government will also mobilize the city's 140,000-strong volunteer team, translators from universities, enterprises and other organizations who speak English, French and Spanish, as well as media groups in China and abroad. The recruitment of volunteers for the Universiade starts on December 5 with their training center unveiled at a municipal youth league school the day following the countdown ceremony. More than 10,000 volunteers will contribute to the 2011 Universiade. They will also promote Universiade culture and Shenzhen's image. Work on infrastructure including sports venues and subways has been accelerated to meet the needs of the event, according to the organizing committee. Construction on one of the 2011 Universiade's most iconic buildings, called the "Spring Cocoon", began in the city's Nanshan district in September.
The 2-billion-yuan Shenzhen Bay Sports Center will include a 20,000-sq-m stadium with 20,000 seats, a 25,000-sq-m gymnasium with 10,000 seats, a swimming pool and a theme park with other sports facilities. Three events - soccer, table tennis and swimming, will be held at the center, a major sub-venue of the Games. The center, covering 30.74 hectares, will be completed by 2010. After the Games, the facilities will be open to the public. The design of the sports center, which has been compared to Beijing's Olympic showpiece National Stadium, was chosen from 52 entries submitted from around the world last year.
The event will need 54 sports venues, including 29 for competitions and 25 for training. Currently 22 venues are ready, with 10 others that will be renovated and 22 built specially for the event. Besides the Shenzhen Bay Sports Center, new facilities will include Universiade City, where the main stadium and gymnasium are located. The Universiade Village in the Universiade City can accommodate 12,000 people and include amenities such as a theater, a clinic, a post office, a bank, and even a prayer hall. The number of city metro lines will be expanded to five from the current two with a total length of 177 km in 2011 able to transport 7 million people every day. The city will also develop 500 bus routes and operate 20,000 taxis. All the stadiums and gyms will be linked by bus services with at least two bus routes. Using the international sports event, Shenzhen aims to be a regional center integrating research, manufacturing and marketing of high-end sports products and services. It was selected as the nation's first pilot in developing the sports industry by the Administration of Sports of China last year. To reach the goal, the city will invest 16 billion yuan, or 1.8 percent of its 2006 GDP, in its sports industry by 2010, according to a government blueprint. By 2020, the added value of the city's sports industry is expected to be 50 billion yuan, accounting for 2.5 percent of its GDP. |
