Rehearsal for the opening ceremony of the 4th Asian Para Games in Hangzhou. Photo courtesy of Hangzhou Asian Para Organizing Committee

Hangzhou, October 10 (Qian Chenfei) "Two Asian Games, equally wonderful", this is the promise of the host, but also the expectation of everyone. On the evening of the 22nd, the opening ceremony of the 22th Hangzhou Asian Para Games (hereinafter referred to as the Hangzhou Asian Para Games) was held. From the "Asian Games moment" to the "Asian Para Games time", why are the two Asian Games equally exciting? Looking inside and outside the arena, the answer "jumps on paper".

Outside the Huanglong Sports Center in Zhejiang Province. Photo by Qian Chenfei

Arena: "Silky" transformation awaits the moment of ignition

Venue facilities are the core carrier of the excitement of the Games. After the conclusion of the Hangzhou Asian Games, in just over ten days, the competition venues in Hangzhou completed the "silky" transition, and barrier-free facilities can be seen everywhere. This also allowed all walks of life to see the determination of the host to ensure "two Asian Games, equally wonderful" in the details of the preparation and organization of the Games.

Among them, the athletics events of the Hangzhou Asian Para Games will be held at the Huanglong Sports Center in Zhejiang Province. As the venue with the largest number of gold medals produced at this Asian Para Games, it will produce gold medals in 153 sports, accounting for about 1/3 of the total events.

"During the race, we have to award about 25 events every day, each award process is expected to be 6 minutes, and it takes only 2 and a half hours to present the awards every day, and the podium, ramps and so on are 'tailor-made' for disabled athletes. We have also set up 36 barrier-free toilets (including temporary) and 3 barrier-free elevators in athletics venues and warm-up venues, and comprehensively upgraded outdoor blind lanes and barrier-free signs. Zhang Bin, deputy director of the center, said.

The Hangzhou Asian Para Games' largest non-competition venue, the Hangzhou Asian Para Games Village, is also ready to go. Yao Gaoyuan, vice chairman and secretary general of the Hangzhou Asian Para Organizing Committee and mayor of Hangzhou, previously said that the Asian Para Games Village adheres to the principle of "abiding by conventions, unifying standards, respecting individuality and paying attention to details", and goes all out to create a safe, warm and comfortable Asian Para Games home for all villagers.

As he said, in order to provide a comfortable and warm living experience, Hangzhou Asian Para Games Village has set up about 1100,30 barrier-free beds, and is equipped with personalized catering services such as wheelchair dining area and love dining area; Provide professional and considerate personalized services, set up grading centers, wheelchair charging piles, assistive device maintenance centers and other supporting service functional areas, and equipped with more than <> various shuttle vehicles, providing barrier-free battery cars, barrier-free buses and other transportation services around the clock.

From the competition venues to the Hangzhou Asian Para Village, such meticulous preparations also wrote the prelude to the wonderful performance of the athletes during the competition.

"Even if the wind rises, life does not give up". This year's Asian Para Games set up 22 major events and 564 sub-events such as archery and athletics, with more than 3000,<> athletes participating. With self-improvement and self-defeat, they are ready to convey passion and emotion to all of Asia.

The lawn bocce event of the Hangzhou Asian Para Games kicked off on the 21st, which is the first time that China has formed a team to participate in the Asian Para Games competition, and they have won a number of group games. Head coach Liu Guoqiang said, "From a blank piece of paper to the Asian Para Games, our team has spent more than two years, except for a short break on holidays, the rest of the time is working hard for the Asian Para Games, this time a total of 2 athletes participated in six of the eight divisions. It is our dream to raise the national flag and play the national anthem in the arena. ”

Also stepping on the Asian Para Games for the first time, Qian Hongyan, a "basketball girl" who had been focused by countless lights, revealed firmness in her eyes, "It is the sport of swimming that has allowed me to go from the mountains to the world, to more and farther places, to see different scenery, and these experiences have also made me more confident and strong." It's the same this time back in the race, I'm going to do my best to swim and get a good result. ”

During the 10 days of "Asian Para Games Time", people will see disabled athletes from various Asian countries and regions go all out on the field, achieve their legends in Hangzhou, show their progress, unity and friendship in the competition, and make the stadium full of infinite excitement.

Adaptive training of swimming events at the Hangzhou Asian Para Games. Photo by Qian Chenfei

Cities: Warm cities show inclusiveness and sharing

The brilliance of the Hangzhou Asian Para Games also lies in the host's use of a loving and barrier-free urban environment and humanistic style to convey the concept of inclusive and shared development to all parties.

As the venue of the event, Hangzhou has undergone many wonderful changes since the preparation of the Asian Para Games. Majid Rashid, president of the Asian Paralympic Committee, said in an interview with China News Agency that Hangzhou is a beautiful and warm city.

"On the second day in Hangzhou, I 'busily' walked around the city and experienced the barrier-free environment in my wheelchair. I was delighted to find that the road was smooth. Compared to the first time I came, it became more convenient. The most important thing is that even in the crowded business district, no one is staring at me, and everyone has a correct understanding of the disabled. Majid Rashid said.

Not only foreign guests who come from afar, but also disabled people who live here every day have a lot of say.

Zhang Hua, president of Hangzhou Barrier-free Environment Promotion Association, is one of them, who has been rooted in the field of barrier-free environment construction for more than 20 years and has witnessed the development of barrier-free environment in Hangzhou from scratch.

"My family lives near the Dongpo Grand Theater, and because there were no barrier-free toilets and wheelchair seats in the theater, if I wanted to go to the performance, I would not dare to drink water the night before, and I could only sit on the side of the audience, which was inconvenient and affected the mood of watching. It is very gratifying to see that the barrier-free environment construction of the whole society has become better and better in recent years, eliminating our worries. The barrier-free facilities may seem small, but they can allow a large number of disabled people to return to society and truly integrate into the social family. Zhang Hua said.

The Asian Para Games is not only a sports event, but also an "important window" to show the level of a city's construction, historical and cultural heritage, and its modernization and development. Taking advantage of the east wind of the Hangzhou Asian Para Games, Hangzhou's barrier-free environment has reached a new level.

Data show that the city has created 121 provincial-level barrier-free communities in Zhejiang, implemented the transformation of 1,5 families with disabilities in difficulty; upgraded 75 sections of urban roads, more than 3,2 kilometers of blind roads, 9,50 edge stone ramps, 1600 urban pedestrian bridges and tunnels, more than 1000,260 barrier-free public toilets, implemented the renovation of 3500,300 elevators in old residential areas, more than 5 "red front" barrier-free demonstration points, more than <>,<> bus stops, launched <> barrier-free cruise rentals, and also built West Lake, Liangzhu, There are five barrier-free tourism routes centered on World Heritage sites such as the Grand Canal.

In addition, the city has also made every effort to promote the construction of information barrier-free construction such as government websites, office windows, and public service agency outlets with the help of digital means; Innovate and develop the "barrier-free service online" platform, providing one-stop integrated services such as barrier-free transportation, 24-hour intelligent online sign language interpretation, barrier-free tourism, movie viewing, life, and barrier-free public interest litigation by the procuratorate, effectively solving problems such as difficult travel, communication, and integration for special groups; In the local area, innovative technologies such as intelligent bionic hands, intelligent bionic legs, and intelligent guide dogs have also been integrated into the lives of disabled people.

During the Hangzhou Asian Para Games, various "Love Hangzhou" Asian Games city volunteer teams will further play the functions of helping the disabled and helping the disabled, helping the disabled to guide and other functions, helping guests and citizens in need to watch the events, visit the scenery, taste the city, and let the world see the enthusiasm and warmth of Hangzhou.

Sport is not only about competitions and medals, but also about the excitement of the Hangzhou Asian Para Games. Contributing more "Hangzhou strength" to the construction of a more inclusive society in Asia is also the addition of "two Asian Games, equally wonderful". (End)