The number of applications to be a volunteer at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games has exceeded 320,000
since the recruitment program began in August last year, according
to the Beijing Organizing Committee for the 2008 Olympic Games
(BOCOG).
By the end of January, the number of applications from
Beijingers had reached 256,180, including 181,570 university and
college students, said the committee.
Around 4,000 employees from more than 150 foreign-funded
enterprises in Beijing, such as IBM and Nokia, also applied for
being volunteers.
"The employees working for foreign enterprises who can speak
foreign languages to a high level will be a major source of Olympic
volunteers, and they will mainly provide help for transport and
accommodation services," said Wang Yi'e, an official from the
Beijing Volunteer Association.
The BOCOG plans to enlist a total of 70,000 volunteers for the
2008 Olympics and 30,000 for the following Paralympics.
BOCOG executive vice president Li Binghua said another round of
recruitment would be initiated in March to receive applicants from
Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, which will be followed with
recruitment for the wider world.
"The first batch of the volunteers will be selected before
August and they will start working during this year's test events,"
said Li.
(Xinhua News Agency February 3, 2006)