(Beijing, October 10th) Ms. Ping Yali, the first-ever Paralympic Gold Medalist in Chinese history, visited Helios Beijing Office today, accompanied by Lucky, her guide dog. All Helios China staff warmly welcomed Ms. Ping in the office and were thrilled to meet her. Helios staff members were introduced to Ms. Ping one by one and each one expressed the admiration that we have for her excellence in sporting career and for her courage to overcome all the hardness after her retirement and to establish her own business.

Ms. Ping Yali won China's very first Paralympic Gold at the Women's B2 Long Jump competition in the 1984 New York Paralympic Games. Since that Paralympics began one month earlier than the Los Angles Olympic Games, in which Mr. Xu Haifeng won the first Olympic Gold Medal for China, Ms. Ping left the earliest footprint in the history of China's Olympics and Paralympics glories. After she retried from sport, she came through some difficult time due to the bankruptcy of the factory at which she worked, leaving her unemployed. However, Ms. Ping struggled bravely for years, driven by the strong soul she gained through decades of hard training, and managed to start a massage clinic chain of her own. Now Ms. Ping is a successful business women who provides jobs for over twenty visual-impaired persons.

As a global leading Olympic and sport marketing consulting agency, Helios has been deeply inspired by Ms. Ping Yali's story as we think the spirit she has showcased in her life is a perfect demonstration of the Olympic values. As part of Helios' Olympic sponsorship consulting service for BHP Billiton, the global mining giant and the Official Diversified Mineral and Medal Sponsor of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, we assisted BHP Billiton to bring Ms. Ping on board as one of the company's Paralympic ambassadors. During lead-up and the course of the Games, Ms. Ping, along with other top athletes from China and all over the world, communicated the Olympic spirit to Chinese communities as well as many international guests on behalf of BHP Billiton. She inspired thousands of school students, miners, media and friends from abroad by sharing with them her own stories and experiences. Helios also has grown friendship with Ms. Ping when working with her. We will continue to support Ms. Ping's efforts striving for a more equal, friendly and supportive social environment for persons with disabilities, and we will try our best to seek support from the entire society, especially the corporate world.

Lucky, the very intelligent and extremely cute guide dog is the first of his kind in China that has been professionally trained and is officially in service. The well-behaved, smart and responsible golden retriever was raised in a volunteer family in the USA, and was brought to China's first guide dog training institution – the Dalian Guide Dog Training Centre for 8 months' training. The centre donated Lucky to Ms. Ping Yali after Lucky passed a strict test. Having experienced the help Lucky brings to her life, Ms. Ping hopes that the society can accept the concept of guide dogs and other supporting dogs for persons with disabilities as soon as possible, so that more Chinese persons with disabilities would be able to receive assistance that they need. As Ms. Ping insisted, Lucky appeared in the "Bird's Nest" at the Opening Ceremony of the Beijing Paralympic Games together with her, delivering one of the last few legs of the Paralympic Torch Relay. Lucky's appearance was one of the most touching moments at the Opening and impressed billions of TV audiences around the globe. Helios is very much delighted to see that the City of Beijing has been applying a series of practical measures to allow guide dogs to enter public areas and take public transportations in the downtown area. We will continuously support the development of guide dog services in China, and we urge the public to learn more about guide dogs and understand from a scientific and fair stand point that they are helps and friends to persons with disabilities.