Special Olympics in Shanghai!

The other night I was sitting at home, wondering what to watch on TV. To my surprise, instead of news, the opening ceremonies of the Special Summer Olympics for 2007 was on. Shanghai was hosting this event. The whole event lasted 3 hours and was an incredible show of music, dance, entertainers and of course the athletes who were here to participate…7,000 of them!

What a spectacular event it was. Every country was represented, and they all proudly walked into the stadium as they called their country, walking behind their flag that was being carried just in front of each group. The athletes all dressed in their uniforms, some matching the colors of their countries’ flag, while others were wearing more ethnical clothes. I was so impressed at the organization and the amount of work that went into the opening night ceremonies. Many volunteers worked at the event to help make it happen and keep the cost down.

The president of China was present, and looked so proud that Shanghai was able to host such a wonderful event. Many celebrities from China and the world were there to participate in the opening ceremonies.

The Special Olympics lasted 10 days and were a great success. A total of 13,500 medals and more than 8,000 ribbons were awarded to the athletes. The last day of the Special Games saw a closing ceremony that was also televised and very enjoyable. The special athletes took part in the closing ceremonies and it was really moving. Of course, there were fireworks that lit up the sky over the stadium to end the Games……With everything that happens in Shanghai, it’s just such a great location in which to be a student, studying Chinese!

Mary Lou