Crammed on every available surface in Zhang Wenquan’s crowded Beijing home are Olympic memorabilia — from mascots and torches to flags, banners, clothes and cuddly toys.
The Chinese superfan scours the Internet for rare souvenirs and snaps selfies several times a week by the countdown clock to next month’s Winter Games in the capital.
Beijing is to become the first city to host the Summer and Winter Olympics — a dream come true for the construction firm worker.
Photo: AFP
Zhang’s interest was first piqued when he became glued to the 2000 Sydney Games as a high-school student.
“I saw China win many gold medals and felt inspired,” the 35-year-old said.
When the Games came to Beijing in 2008, he worked as an official volunteer — a life-changing experience that sparked his passion for collecting Olympic souvenirs.
Wearing a Beijing Winter Games scarf and sweatshirt emblazoned with its mascot — plus a headband reading: “Come on, Winter Olympics” — Zhang shows off the array of merchandise covering his home.
The house is so full of piles of boxes that he has been forced to sleep elsewhere.
He estimates that he has so far spent at least 400,000 yuan (US$62,943) on 5,000 souvenirs.
Zhang daily scours eBay for new listings, with the most expensive find being a US$1,900 torch from the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Games.
He has row upon row of the mascot Bing Dwen Dwen for next month’s Winter Games — a panda wearing a shell made of ice — in various colors and sizes.
In 2008, Zhang helped with scoring at Beijing’s Wukesong Baseball Stadium — a photograph from the time shows a scrawny, bespectacled young man in a sky-blue Olympic jersey proudly holding a baseball bat aloft in an empty arena.
In his cluttered house, a framed certificate of participation hangs on the wall.
Zhang was intoxicated by the atmosphere in 2008, a time of extraordinary national pride.
China won 48 gold medals and displayed growing strength as a global power.
Zhang was not successful in the competitive selection process to be a volunteer this year, but hopes to obtain tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies — as well as his favorite sport, figure skating.
He currently makes frequent trips to Beijing’s Olympic sites.
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