The Special Olympics Town has become a beautiful world for the disabled athletes attending the 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games, held from Oct. 2-11 in Shanghai.
"I love this place because I can play games here," Liu Shuang, a local special education institute student, said while playing electronic bowling on screen. It took him a while to know how to control the buttons on the remote.
The Town is a venue for a variety of recreational activities such as rope matrix, electronic games, hoop throwing, moldering and disco dancing.
All kinds of delicate prizes are given out according to related game rules, adding more holiday ambience to the Town. The prizes are mainly small crafts.
Located at northern Shanghai's Jiangwang Stadium, the town aims to offer diverse and popular entertainment activities for the intellectually disabled athletes and their families and coaches.
A global ambassador for Special Olympics from the United States with slight intellectual disability, Dustin Plunkett has become a star after introducing the torch into the opening ceremony on Tuesday with China's NBA centre Yao Ming.
His appearance at the Special Olympics Town on Friday made a splash as many people came to photograph with or talk to him.
"I must say these fun activities are well-designed and people will like them," he said, "and their families can enjoy more happy moments with these athletes outside the competitions."
"I hope more and more people could understand the disabled, thus making the world more beautiful," said Fan Lei, a student from Shanghai Jiao Tong University working as a volunteer.
"I did not pay attention to them in the past. Those with intellectual disabilities really deserve more care and respect."
Some regular sporting games, of course, can be found in the Town, with football, basketball and table tennis being the most popular.
"Many think that they are incompetent, but I believe that if they are taught in a right way, they will excel," Fan said.
"Like playing table tennis, many athletes can definitely beat me. What they need is care."
Source: Xinhua
|
Comment
Tell A Friend
Print Format
Save Article