He Zhenliang: China鈥檚 Sports Diplomat

He Zhenliang: China´s Mr. Olympics

He says most IOC members are highly respected people, and with them, a frank and honest attitude is always the best way.

"One influential IOC member told me 'I have to tell you frankly that last time when I voted for Sydney instead of Beijing, it was because I was a little concerned about political stability in China, as your senior Leader Deng Xiaoping was very old. I didn't know what would happen after Deng. And in my continent there are many former socialist countries that have problems. So I was concerned about China, but what happened in China during these eight years showed that I was wrong, so this time I will vote for Beijing.' So with the IOC members, you should adopt a very frank and honest attitude. Don't avoid the problems. Yes, we have problems but we will take this measure and that measure, and we'll make sure that this problem will be solved before the Games."

Continued efforts were finally rewarded with good results. When Beijing won the bid, He Zhenliang was so excited that he was moved to tears. He started his career in the Olympic cause in the 1950s, and has been working in this field for half a century.

"When I started to work for the COC, our relation with the IOC encountered difficulties because of the problem of Taiwan. So we strived for almost 30 years to restore our legitimate seat in the Olympic movement. So you can see how happy we were when the problem was solved."

He Zhenliang says he loves his job and loves the Olympic cause.

"It's really very challenging but also very exciting. Challenging because we have to face all kinds of problems, sports, economic and political; but also it's exciting because when you see your efforts have achieved good results, you really feel happy. For me, what's important is that I have done my utmost for my country."

Editor:Zhang  Source:CCTV.com