| Bejing Olympics Info from NBC Commentator |
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Beijing Olympics 1992 Olympic Champion Joe Jacobi recently sent an email about his participation in the in NBC Canoe/Kayak broadcast team for the upcoming Olympics in Beijing. His team includes former US Olympic Coach Bill Endicott, and Paddling Life editor Eugene Buchanan. Check out www.joejacobi.com for more information. Read Joe and Bill Endicott’s email about how the future of paddling in China – and how the momentum of the Olympics will help stimulate whitewater throughout Asia. “The Olympics are always exciting, but we think this one could be special for whitewater because it could be a major stimulus for developing a whole new whitewater/outdoor industry in China and Asia. Yes, the Chinese are relatively new to the sport, but millions of people in coastal cities like Beijing and Shanghai now have disposable income and are looking for adventurous ways to spend it. China has already built at least 8 artificial whitewater courses and we think the Olympics will do much to introduce the sport to hundreds of millions of people in the country. China has thousands of untapped wild rivers, especially in western China. But they are threatened by dams - China already has half the world's dams - to meet China's ballooning energy needs. We believe the way to save these rivers is to get people interested in running them and seeing for themselves what valuable resources they are. In short, just as the TV coverage of the 1972 Olympic whitewater events helped stimulate the US whitewater industry, we think these Olympics can help to spread whitewater rafting and kayaking throughout China (and Asia), create millions of new jobs and loads of international exchanges and fabulous adventures for millions of people. A byproduct of this, we believe, will be to increase environmental awareness in China and cut down on pollution. At the moment, China's whitewater industry is in its infancy. It is believed that there are nearly 600 rafting companies in China, but all of them do only single day trips, typically between one and two hours long. The equipment used now in China is poor and in general the level of professionalism of guides and outfitters is low. All clientele is domestic at present. Over the next few years, many things, such as the following need to be done to develop the industry in China and China needs foreign experts like you to help: * Create an inventory of all China's whitewater rivers. * Create a program for training Chinese river guides -- a guide licensing program. * Train people to manage the tourists' logistics. * Organize corporate raft races. * Create international rafting or recreational kayaking festivals. So, we invite you to embark with us on a great adventure. Start by watching the NBC coverage of the whitewater events in August - and after that, stay tuned for what we hope will be a whole new world of whitewater adventures to come!” |
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