Bachelet hands over flag González will carry in Beijing

SANTIAGO.- Fernándó González is already in Beijing and the Chilean flag that he will carry at the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games on Friday is, as of today, in the possession of the Olympic Committee of Chile (COCh).

Today, President Michelle Bachelet gave the flag to the president of COCh, Neven Ilic, but not before asking the Chilean athletes that will be participating in these Olympic Games to “honorably represent our nation” and follow the example of their fellow countrymen throughout history who have won the prestigious medals.

“As the President of Chile, I wish them the best and I want to entrust them with this flag as a symbol of the support and confidence of all of our nation’s citizens”, stated Bachelet.

The flag that will be carried by Fernándo González –who won a gold medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics- is 2.75 meters wide and 3 meters long.  It is still not known whether the flag will remain with him or in the possession of COCh until it is granted to the Chilean representative for the next Olympic Games.