(Beijing, November 7) The inaugural meeting of the organizing committee of the "Good Luck Beijing" 2008 IAAF Race Walking Challenge and 2008 China Athletics Open scheduled for next April and May was held in Beijing on November 7, 2007, marking the beginning of a new phase of the construction and operation of the National Stadium, or the "Bird's Nest".

As the main stadium of next year's Beijing Olympic and Paralympic Games, the "Bird's Nest" will host the opening and closing ceremonies and competitions of such sports as athletics, men's football finals, race walking and marathon. Due to its unique architectural style, the stadium has been the focus of world attention over the past years.

The "Good Luck Beijing" 2008 IAAF Race Walking Challenge scheduled on April 18-19 will be the first competition to be held here after its completion towards the end of next March. Following that, the 2008 China Athletics Open will be held on May 22-25 to help further test the overall operation of the venue according to Olympic standards.

Attending the meeting were Liu Jingmin, Vice Mayor of Beijing and Executive Vice President of the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad (BOCOG), and Zhang Jiandong, President of the organizing committee of the two upcoming events.