Disabled Athletes Find China Lacking
There are some 83 million disabled people in China, but the country has never been particularly hospitable to them. Why bother building subway ramps and bus lifts, the attitude has long been, for people who aren't expected to leave home? But when Beijing was awarded the 2008 Summer Olympics, the Paralympic Games, an event featuring 4,000 disabled athletes, came along with it. So in the spirit of the 12-day competition, which opened on Saturday, China's government raced to bring Beijing up to international standards, creating 16 special bus lines for the athletes, installing street-crossing signals for the blind and adding wheelchair-friendly subway exits. It even outfitted a section of the Great Wall with a ramp and an elevator.
