The Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games Organising Committee (NYOGOC) unveiled its official mascot Thursday at a ceremony held at the Nanjing Olympic Centre, one of the main competition venues for the 2014 Youth Games.
“Nanjinglele”, as the official mascot is called, is inspired by a unique natural feature of the host city known as the “Rain-Flower Pebble”, (also translated as “Riverstone”). The mascot’s design takes the typical shape and appearance of this stone, but in a creative and artistic way, highlighting the colours from the emblem’s palette.
The word “Lele” represents the sound of stones colliding together and is pronounced like the Chinese word meaning happiness or joy.
More than 4,000 people, including students, locals, government officials and sponsor representatives, attended the ceremony.
International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Jacques Rogge said in a congratulatory letter read during the ceremony, “the design of Nanjinglele is truly inspiring and will certainly capture the attention of the world’s youth and older generations alike. Not only does it incorporate aspects of the host city’s majestic local stone, the Riverstone, but it is bright and vibrant and sets the tone for a fun, colourful and energetic YOG”.
Nanjinglele was chosen following a nationwide mascot design competition launched by NYOGOC earlier this year in which more than 1.2 million students from more than 900 colleges across China participated.
During the event, CAO Weixing, Vice Governor of Jiangsu Province and Vice President of NYOGOC, presented an award to the winning designer, Cui Xinye, 25, a college student.
Yang Weize, General Secretary of CPC Municipal Committee and Executive of NYOGOC, said, “as a messenger of the Nanjing 2014 concept and the Youth Olympic spirit, Nanjinglele will win numerous friends all over the world with its cute and vivid look. It simultaneously sends an invitation to all the young people around the world to take part in Nanjing 2014 and to join in the YOG experience wherever they are”.
The 2nd Summer Youth Olympic Games will take place in Nanjing August 2014 bringing together more than 3,800 young athletes from more than 200 countries and regions. Following the 28 sports on the Olympic program, athletes will take part in high level competition, as well as a series of cultural and educational activities.
