Following a spectacular curtain raiser, the directors, designers
and artists of the Special Olympics are ready to raise the bar with
a breathtaking closing ceremony.
With the theme "Sunshine and Life", the closing ceremony will
offer a farewell party packed with displays by intellectually
disabled performers and other guests from 164 nations and
regions.
"If the opening ceremony started like a dream, then let's
fulfill it at the close," said Teng Junjie, the
director-in-general.
"We will write a full stop for the games, and add an exclamation
mark."
He warned that Typhoon Krosa, which made landfall between the
provinces of Zhejiang and Fujian in East China yesterday, will have an
impact on the ceremony's rehearsal but will not prevent the
show.
The steering committee of the Special Olympics World Summer
Games has prepared emergency plans to deal with the impact of the
approaching storm.
It said yesterday that most of the indoor sports would continue
as scheduled while only a few outdoor events, including athletics,
cycling, soccer and baseball, could be postponed for Monday if
weather worsened.
Tennis and Bocce have been shifted to indoor courts. Kayaking
has been held ahead of schedule.
The closing ceremony will be divided into three chapters titled
"Connection of Hearts", "Happy You and Me" and "Linger in
Eternity," as well as a closing part called Sunshine Family.
The sunshine theme will run through the event as it corresponds
to the Sunshine Homes set up across Shanghai to care for and offer
vocational training to people with intellectual disabilities.
"Whether you are disabled or not, you can lead a happy life and
contribute to a civilized and inclusive society," Teng said. "The
opening ceremony focused on telling the story of cultures coming
together.
"The closing ceremony will be about bidding farewell and
departing, as well as the friends we've made."
The ceremony will give full play to the creativeness and
artistic abilities of people with and without disabilities, and
demonstrate what mentally disabled people can achieve when they set
their minds to it.
Highlights of the program include athletes and guests forming
the Special Olympics logo at the venue, a mentally disabled girl
fulfilling her dream of flying in front of tens of thousands
spectators and the debut of a "Sunshine Hut" decorated with the
signatures of 7,500 Special Olympics athletes.
Fireworks, liquid crystal displays and mechanical displays will
also feature in the 80-munite event. Performers including opera
singer Jose Carreras from Spain, Marria Lucia of Italy, Michael
Learns to Rock of Denmark, Kenny G of the United States, and a
number of local performers will be taking part.
China's disabled athletes Qiao Meili and Zhouzhou will also take
part.
(China Daily October 8, 2007)