PARALYMPIC AND PARA SPORTS NEWS

Today, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Executive Board accepted Chicago (USA), Madrid (Spain), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) and Tokyo (Japan)* as Candidate Cities to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2016. The cities were accepted from a total of seven Applicant Cities, which also included Baku (Azerbaijan), Doha (Qatar) and Prague (Czech Republic)*.

Today, Caja Madrid released a special VISA credit card supporting the Paralympic Movement in Spain and in particular the current preparation of athletes that will participate in the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games.

The Finnish Paralympic Committee hosted the fourth National Paralympic Day on 21 May in the city centre of Helsinki.

The Beijing Capital International Airport (BCIA) will undergo reconstruction in order to make the airport more accessible to athletes, teams and spectators arriving in the run-up to the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games in September.

Bonn, Germany - Today marks the 100-day countdown to the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games.

The Asian Paralympic Committee (APC) held an extensive survey of 14 Asian countries regarding the status of women in Paralympic sports this past month. In the survey, APC found that although some countries had achieved more than others, the possibility of future progress is inevitable.

Over 170 sporting facilities from every part of the United Kingdom (UK) will feature in London 2012’s Pre-Games Training Camp Guide for Paralympic sports.

From 20 to 23 May, the fourth and last Project Review for the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games took place in Beijing, China.

Panasonic recently announced that the company has agreed on a partnership with the Beijing 2008 Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games (BOCOG) to become an Official Partner of the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games in the Video and Audio Equipment Category.

Bonn, Germany - The third International Olympic Committee (IOC) Co-ordination Commission for the Olympic and Paralympic Summer Games in 2012 took place in London, Great Britain, from 20 to 22 May.

Tourists with a disability from all over the world will now have better access to Beijing's famous Forbidden City and Great Wall following extensive renovations. New facilities were opened on 18 May, to mark the National Help-the-Disabled Day in China.

As part of the Catalonian Games for Adapted Sport, the second Spanish Paralympic School Day (PSD) took place at the Can Llobet Public School of Barberá del Vallés last week. Organized by the Catalan Federation for Physically Disabled (FCEDF) and supported by the Spanish Paralympic Committee, this educational day reached more than 100 school children.

Vancouver, Canada - From 14 to 16 May, the third official Project Review was held between the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC).

On 10 May 2008, US Paralympic swimmer Jessica Long received the Juan Antonio Samaranch IOC President’s Disabled Athlete Award. The award was presented to Long during a ceremony at the 2008 Paralympic World Cup in Manchester, Great Britain.

Message to Chinese Earthquake Victims and Families

Bonn, Germany - Yesterday, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Governing Board (GB) concluded its 50th official meeting, which was held in Tehran, Iran.

According to a recent survey, 93% of the UK public see Paralympic athletes as good role models for young people. A total of 69% of those polled say that there should be more media coverage of Paralympic Sport.

The National Paralympic Committees of Spain and China signed a significant document last week which would allow a free-flow of information exchange about Paralympic sports and events. This will in effect promote the Paralympic Movement, leaving a permanent open pipeline of knowledge and experiences between Spain and China.