A CPPCC member from Shanghai has proposed that the city should bid to host the Olympic Games in 2024 or 2028. Mr. Xiong Sidong, who wrote a 3000-word proposal on this matter, advocates China to continue to host the Olympics, taking the Beijing game as a “start point.”
China can and should try to host more Olympic Games, Mr. Xiong says. The Beijing game, according to him, has prepared China with the facilities, a good team and necessary experience, as well as “a friendly international environment that understands and supports China,” for a second bid. Plus, continuing to host more games can help to maintain the economic momentum generated by the hosting. Proposals from CPPCC members are supposed to be reviewed by the government and may be adopted and put into action.
It is pretty courageous for Mr. Xiong to put forward such a proposal amid all kinds of controversies surrounding the up-coming Olympic Games in August, which have caused a lot of headache for the Chinese government but are not necessarily made fully aware to the Chinese public, perhaps including Mr. Xiong himself. Nevertheless, the idea grabbed the attention of a lot of web viewers who left about 2000 comments.
Supporters are abundant, but more for the idea of China hosting more Olympics than the specific location. In fact, Mr. Xiong’s proposal inspired many people to advocate their own cities like Wuhan, Nanjing, Xi’an and Guizhou, even small cities like Jining, Shandong and Tieling, Liaoning, to be the host. People who do not like Mr. Xiong’s idea call it “daydreaming” or “acting on impulse,” criticizing such a proposal as worthless and calling on CPPCC members to focus on real issues like controlling China's rocketing housing prices and inflation. There are also people suggesting a general vote to be held to decide on China’s next Olympic bid.
