The Fuwa, the official mascots of the Beijing 2008 Olympic
Games, toured London on the third leg of their global journey from
February 28 to March 4.
During their tour of local schools, landmark buildings, football
stadiums and Chinatown, the mascots extended their best wishes to
the?7 million inhabitants of the city for the London 2012
Olympic Games and give Beijing and London, the two Olympic host
cities an opportunity to share the Olympic spirit and to talk about
their respective Olympic preparations.
The Fuwa promotion campaign was started on the afternoon of
February 28 in front of London City Hall. In his speech, Mayor Ken
Livingstone extended a warm welcome to the mascots and expressed
the hope that the Olympics would bring the two capitals even
closer. At the invitation of Mr. Livingstone, Beijing Mayor Wang
Qishan, who was on a business trip in London, posed with him for a
photograph beside the five mascots.
During its stay in London, the Fuwa delegation talked with
Londoners on the Olympic ideals and the symbolic meaning of the
mascots. In East London, 500 school children were taught to call
the Fuwa by their names in Mandarin amid dancing and singing, and
some of them even understood the meaning behind the combination of
the names of the five mascots -- Beibei, Jingjing, Huanhuan,
Yingying and Nini: Welcome to Beijing.
On March 4, the mascots appeared at half-time during a First
League football match between West Ham United and Tottenham.
Spectators were delighted to see a performance by five children
wearing colorful costumes inspired by the outfit of the inflated
Fuwa.
London's media, including the BBC and the Evening Standard, paid
close attention to the Fuwa campaign. The BBC, for example, went to
great lengths to follow the Fuwa's expedition along the Thames
during the whole day of March 2. AFP, AP and other world media did
not miss the event either.
Volunteers also played a role in the campaign. About 30
volunteers from Britain, Poland and other countries offered their
help during street performances, while tens of overseas Chinese
performed lion dances to create a festive atmosphere.
It is the third time that the Fuwa take a journey overseas: the
lovely quintet have already toured the US and Finland.
(BOCOG March 7, 2007)
