Source: CCTV.com

07-21-2008 15:37

The 29th Beijing Olympic Games opened on August 8th, attracting athletes from all over the world. At their sports events, the athletes will try their personal best to earn a medal. But there are many individuals aside from the athletes trying their personal best to make this year's Olympics the best ever. This year's Olympic Games relies upon the involvement and active participation of thousands of volunteers. Have you ever seen any Olympics volunteers?

The word "volunteer" comes from the Latin word "valo" or "velle", meaning "hope, determination, or willingness". Voluntary services are non-profit and non-remunerative efforts which individuals make for the purposes of improving the welfare of others in the neighborhood, the community and in society. Forms of voluntary services include: the traditional mutual assistance between neighbors, large organizational effort to relieve hardship, resolve conflicts and diminish poverty.

The Volunteer Association of China defines volunteers as: people who are willing to provide services or assistance to society or to others, not for material gains, but from a sense of conscience, faith and responsibility.

The Volunteers Corps of the Beijing Olympics and Paralympics has 100,000 Game-time volunteers, 400,000 city volunteers and more than 1 million social volunteers.