The campaign to recruit volunteers for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and the Paralympic
Games from across the mainland began yesterday afternoon.
People from 30 provinces and cities can now apply for volunteer
positions via a special website (www.zgzyz.org.cn) or through
provincial websites. Prospective volunteers can also call the
hotline, 010-12308, for information.
The recruitment of volunteers from Beijing began last August,
and over 250,000 applications have since been received.
The latest recruitment drive for volunteers was met with the
same level of enthusiasm outside the capital city.
According to officials, 2,228 people from outside Beijing
expressed their interest within 30 minutes of the launch.
Enrolment for people in Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan and overseas
will start from March.
"The requirements for the volunteers from outside Beijing remain
the same as the general policies for Beijing applicants," said Li
Shixin, vice director of the volunteers department of the Beijing
Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad (BOCOG).
"All the volunteers from outside Beijing must pay their own travel
costs to and from the capital city, as well as for
accommodation."
General policies for applicants include being at least 16 years
old (born before June 30, 1990); being able to work for more than
seven days during the Games; Chinese applicants should be able to
speak at least one foreign language; and those whose first language
is not Chinese should be able to speak some Chinese.
According to Li, 100 volunteers will be recruited from each
province, with 80 for the Olympics and 20 for the Paralympics.
It is estimated that a total of 70,000 volunteers will be needed
for the Olympic Games, with another 30,000 needed for the
Paralympic Games.
The volunteers will provide support in areas including guest
reception, language translation, transport, security, medical
services, spectator services, communications, venue operations and
media operations.
BOCOG will make a final decision on the first group of recruits
this August. The recruitment process will be wrapped up by May
2008.
At yesterday's ceremony, the "Chinese Volunteers, People's
Olympics" campaign was also launched.
The campaign will run for two years and aims to spread the
concept and spirit of the Beijing Olympic and Paralympic Games.
It will include training and communication activities, and
contests to encourage Chinese youth and the general public to
participate in the "Welcome Olympics, Upgrade Civility and Create a
Sound Social Environment" campaign. Program activities will be
integrated with the Olympic volunteer recruitment drive and torch
relay.
(China Daily January 20, 2007)
