由首都科学决策研究会、北京国际城市发展研究院共同发起，北京市朝阳区人民政府主办、中国传媒大学承办的“中国城市论坛奥运大讲堂”于9月20日举行了隆重的启动仪式。来自全国80多个大中城市代表、少数民族代表、社区自愿者和外国友人共300多人出席了会议。

The lecture on Olympics, as part of the China City Forum¹, was launched in Beijing's Chaoyang District September 20, 2006.

Initiated² by non-governmental research institutions and supported by BOCOG, the campaign was intended to bring Olympic knowledge to the mass.

"The vitality³ of the Olympics rests with the participation⁴ of the general public and the popularization of the Olympic Spirit," said Jiang Xiaoyu, BOCOG executive vice-president who attended the launching ceremony.

A crowd of over 300 people, including representatives from eighty medium- and small-sized cities and ethnic⁵ groups, community volunteers, and foreign friends, witnessed the launch.

The event, expected to last for two years, will also be staged in Olympic co-host cities and other major cities in China, according organizers.

The lecture and related communication activities deal with such topics as relations between the Olympics and city development, environment, science and technology, culture as well as health, encouraging various media to take part in the campaign.

Vocabulary:

ethnic groups：民族