Less than two days since its opening last Sunday, the athletes' village for the Beijing Paralympics has already won praise for its facilities. Meanwhile, the main press center for the Paralympic games has also been declared open for journalists. CRI's Zheng Chenguang reports.
Reporter:
What makes the Paralympics village different from its predecessor, the Olympic village, is not just a change of name but a bunch of adjustments made to meet the needs of Paralympics athletes.
This includes the installation of tactile, accessible pavements for people with disabilities in public areas.
The height of serving tables has been lowered, passageways have been are enlarged to facilitate access for athletes, and wheelchair-traction services and golf carts have been made available.
Italiy Krasnova is a Paralympian from Lithuania.
"It's very comfortable and very convenient. Apparently, the Paralympics village takes the needs of the Paralympians into full consideration during construction. You can say this village is the best one among the three Paralympics villages I've experienced. It's good for organizers to always put the athletes' needs first."
The 66-hectare village has 42 apartment buildings, shops as well as a hospital, bank and places of worship.
Meanwhile, the Main Press Center for the 13th Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games opened on Tuesday.
Organizers of the Paralympic Games are making use of the Olympic MPC, aiming to provide the same quality of services it did during the Olympic Games.
The MPC is strictly complies with the design specifications of barrier-free buildings.
Sha Wanquan is an official with MPC Venue Operation Team. He addressed a press conference on media services on Tuesday.
"A total of 47 disabled journalists from 13 countries and regions have registered to be accredited."
Sha also says the total number of accredited media personnel of the Paralympic Games has reached 6,325.
The Beijing Paralympic Games will be held from Sept. 6th to 17th. Some 1.2 million tickets out of the total 1.65 million have already been sold.
Zheng Chenguang, CRI news.