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Secretary Evans, a long-time supporter of Special Olympics, was welcomed at the school by Mr. Deng Pufang, Chairman of the China Disabled Persons Federation and Honorary Chairman of Special Olympics China. After touring the facilities and learning more about the vocational training Chaoyang Special School provides to its students, Secretary Evans spoke about the importance of continued support of programs like Special Olympics in changing attitudes towards people with intellectual disabilities. He said this needs to continue to be a priority and thanked American businesses who joined the activities, including Marriott, Coca-Cola, McDonalds, Otis and Motorola, for their support of Special Olympics programming in China.
After joining the athletes in competition at soccer, golf, table tennis and bocce, Secretary Evans spoke with students and praised Special Olympics for its vision of changing attitudes toward people with intellectual disabilities. "Today's visit was an opportunity to acknowledge Special Olympics athletes who, through their courage, accomplishments and dedication, are the catalyst for positive social change and an inspiration to all who know them," said Secretary Evans.
Special Olympics' aims to increase its' visibility and reach in China where an estimated 34 million people currently have some form of intellectual disability. Today, Special Olympics China is the fastest growing program in the Special Olympics global movement. Special Olympics continues to have aggressive goals for China aiming to grow from 50,000 participants in 2000 to over 500,000 athletes involved in programs by the end of 2005. Currently, 300,000 athletes participate in China Special Olympics programs, growth of 136% since 2000. China has also been selected to host the 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Shanghai.
Secretary Donald Evans is the 34th Secretary to lead the U.S. Department of Commerce. He oversees a diverse Cabinet agency of 40,000 workers and a $5 billion budget that not only promotes American business but gathers vast quantities of economic and demographic data, issues patents and trademarks, helps set industrial standards, forecasts the weather and researches the oceans. He is a key member of President Bush's economic policy team and special task force on energy. |
