(Beijing, January 24) -- Hou Bin, an excellent Paralympian from China, has been appointed the first International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Ambassador, Sir Philip Craven, president of the IPC, announced in a press conference here on Thursday.

Hou's appointment launched the IPC Ambassador Project, and this year ten IPC Ambassadors will be selected

IPC Ambassadors include active and retired Paralympians with a record of excellent Paralympic performance. As inspiring individuals with a physical disability, they will promote the spirit of the Paralympics to the public and encourage the youth and future Paralympians to pursue their aims to be excellent Paralympians, explained Sir Philip.

And some of them were Paralympic champions and some were not. "But they all have excellent personalities."

Hou Bin, 32, had won three Paralympic gold medals in his 15-year professional sports career.

Extremely excited with the honor, he said that as a Chinese Paralympic athlete, he was just one of the diligent athletes in China. He will take the opportunity to promote the assiduous athleticism of Paralympians and show more encouraging stories of them to the world.

According to the press conference, IPC Ambassadors will take part in IPC-related activities and educational training programs and present other keynote events, such as IPC Day, the World Paralympic Championships and, most importantly, the Paralympic Games.