The Official Website of the Beijing 2008 Olympic GamesAugust 8-24 2008
Since August 2001, when Rogge visited Beijing for the first time as IOC president to watch the World University Games, he has been to Beijing several times. Speaking of his impressions of the development of Beijing over the past years, he said every time he lands in Beijing, he doesn't recognize the city.
"Each time it's a new city. This is a city now with splendid sports venues; this is a city where the transportation system is vastly improved. It's also a city that will have a new airport; it's a city that also is far better in terms of pollution and environment than it was before. There's still some work to do but there is major progress, so it's a new city and that is in fact the greatest legacy of the Olympic Games. The Olympic Games are about much more than just a sports competition. They really reshape the face of a city," he commented.
He further elaborated his views on venue construction, saying the IOC wants it "definitely to leave a positive and sustainable legacy for the Olympic Games," instead of building venues that are too big, or "white elephants." "The venues that are built for the Games must be adapted to their post-Games use," "that is the philosophy that we have to respect. "
He said Beijing and BOCOG "are doing the excellent work" in preparing for the Olympics and "the collaboration between the two is absolutely excellent. Everything is being implemented according to schedule and deadline. The only advice I could give is to learn as much as possible from the test events and to implement these lessons in the last operational phase until the real Olympic Games."
On the occasion of the one-year countdown to the Beijing Games, the IOC will be mailing out invitations from Beijing to various national and regional Olympic committees (NOCs). Previously, IOC has done this at its headquarters in Lausanne. Rogge said this time IOC acts this way just "because we want to put Beijing at the center of this ceremony and it is better to send it from Beijing since people will come to Beijing."
In Rogge's sports career, he was an excellent yacht sailor and a member of the Belgian rugby team. Talking about his love of sports, he said sports has shaped his life as a young kid and as an Olympic athlete, "and it is still shaping my life now as a sports administrator, so sport has been a constant passion in my life. Once you get this passion you cannot lose it; it's impossible; it's too strong; it's too good."He said his family members support him very much in that and they all love sport.
Turning to the volunteer work of the 2008 Games, the president said he wished the volunteers the best of luck: "Tell them this is going to be an exciting adventure and that if they have the privilege to go to Beijing, then their dream will come true. "
He thought passion is very important for volunteers: "I think the tens of thousands of volunteers who will participate in the Olympic Games will be rewarded not by money but by fulfilling their passion and by fulfilling their dream and ultimately, by realizing the dream of China. It's the same for me as a volunteer in the International Olympic committee--I'm rewarded when sport is progressing."
Mr. Rogge expressed his great interest for the Beijing Olympics official website and supported the two recent web campaigns, the "Olympic Families Tour Beijing" contest, and recruitment of 2008 Honorary Visitors of the website. He wished the ten families who won the opportunity to visit Beijing "the best of luck and tell them this is going to be an exciting adventure and that if they have the privilege to go to Beijing then their dream will come true. "
Accepting the website's invitation to be in the Honorary Visitors' list, Mr. Rogge said: "I thank you very much I'm very honored by this distinction. To all the visitors I would say the best thing that will happen in 2008 is the Beijing Olympic Games. Watch the website."
| [Previous][1][2] |
