The flags of over 50 participating countries and regions flap in the wind above Qingdao Olympic Sailing Center.        Ju Chenghao

By Te Kan

QINGDAO:  Bank  of  China (BOC),  the  Beijing  Olympics'' sole  official  banking  partner, is   providing   high-quality banking services  to  the   2007 Qingdao  International  Sailing Regatta,  the  last  test  event for  the   2008  Olympic  Sailing Competition.

AccordingtoGuoXingang,the vice-president of BOC Shandong Branch, whose headquarters is in Qingdao, the bank has set up a  special  department  to  serve the  Olympic  sailing  regatta.

Along  the  Donghai  Road  next to  the  Olympic  Sailing  Center, there  are  more  than  10  business outlets.

For  convenience  of  foreign athletes  and  guests,  the  bank has  given  their  staff  lectures on  the  English  skill  and  service etiquette.

"As  for  the  bank  service, everything  is  good  for  us.  We haven''t  had  any  problems  getting money from ATMs or anything like that. It seems like the Bank of China is great supporter of the event," said Tom Slingsby, an Australian sailor.

Like  BOC,  many  other  companies are supporting the  2007 Qingdao International Regatta: energy giant Sinopec is the title sponsor, and there are 11 partners and 14 suppliers.

Most of the 11 partners are world-famousbrands:Schenker, Coca Cola, Bank of China, China Mobile, Shanghai Volkswagen, Volvo,  OMEGA,  and  China Netcom.

Two  partners  are  headquartered  in  Qingdao:  Haier  and JASFEEL. Like hundreds of the other local companies, they are contributing to the event. By doing so, the companies not only display their brand images, but also  express  their  willingness to  provide  full  support  to  the regatta.

The    sports    channel    of Sohu.com,  one  of  China''s  top Internet portals, is also a partner of the regatta.

Most of the vehicles, as well as  all  beverages  and  regatta souvenirs are provided by the partners and suppliers.

According  to  Zhu  Yuetao, an  official  from  the  Qingdao Sailing  Committee,  the  financial and product support from the  sponsors  will  account  for at least 70 percent of the total expenditure of this event.