Basic Chinese 100 for Beijing 2008 Olympic Games is the first Chinese-language phrasebook geared specifically toward the Olympics, said Vice Director Zhang Xinsheng of the China State Leading Group for Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language.

Zhang was speaking at a Tuesday press conference held in Beijing to announce the official release of the book.

The phrasebook utilizes the basic rules of teaching Chinese as a second language and notes in English and French to assist foreign visitors in learning linguistic survival skills. The 25 simple scenes and topics are amplified with basic sentences, extended sentences and dialogues. Study tips and information on sports, life and travel are extra features that visitors to the Chinese capital will find particularly useful.

The book also includes a CD-ROM to assist foreign learners with pronunciation and other aspects of language study.

Basic Chinese was compiled by the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad (BOCOG) and the China National Office for Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language (NOCFL).

Its creators say that the book is a manifestation of the concept of Beijing 2008 "humanism Olympics."

Copies will be donated to the International Olympics Committee, the Athens Olympic Organizing Committee and various international sports organizations for individual events.

The phrasebook is the first step in a larger scheme to promote the Beijing Olympics and the Chinese language. By 2008, BOCOG and NOCFL plan to compile a series of language textbooks; hold a Chinese Language Competition for college students on the theme of China welcoming the Olympics and provide various language training and translation services.

(China.org.cn by Chen Lin and Wang Qian August 24, 2004)