Olympic Village to Paralympic Village in 26 Hours

The Olympic Village will host the Paralympics athletes right after the Olympic Games' closing ceremony.

But how will the changeover occur?

Deng agreed the transformation of the Village in the short period of 26 hours for the Paralympics poses a great challenge.

Almost all the preparation work needs to be done ahead of time and that means now. The Paralympics-related preparations were well-integrated into the Olympic Village planning to make sure everything doesn't come down to the final 26 hours.

"This is because we will face too much risk if we really leave everything to that final moment," Deng said. "And good preparation in advance is the precondition for a smooth transformation."

The 26 hours will only see some insignificant change in the Village's function and appearance. Work done during this time will only account for 10 percent of the entire workload for the transformation, which should ensure a successful and thorough transformation.

Commodity house "Dream World 2008"

Houses in the Olympic Village were designed for sale after the Olympic Games.

With two years on the market already, the houses, called "Dream World 2008" have been very popular with the public. The village consists of 42 buildings, 20 six-storied and 22 nine-storied. It will potentially house more than 1,800 families. After the Paralympics, the houses will be ready for move-in for whoever has already purchased them.

"It's a very practical after-game utilization to avoid waste," Deng pointed out. "This is a practice not only seen in Beijing, but also in other former Olympic cities, like the Olympic Village in Seoul."

After the game, Guoao Investment Company will own the franchise of the Olympic Village for 30 years.

(China.org.cn by Zhang Ming'ai and Chen Boyuan July 15, 2008)