`  :1,i, ``Welcome, Friends`` ``It gives me the greatest of pleasure to welcome all of you to Beijing. This is no ordinary occasion. As bridge and the other mind sports are paving their way towards Olympic recognition, we are experiencing the unprecedented pleasure of welcoming young players from no fewer than 74 countries [number of U28 teams entries], representing all the continents and zones. At the same time, we will be holding our prime Youth events, the competitions for the Ortiz-Patino and Damiani Trophies, for young and younger players.`` opening words by Panos Gerontopoulos :5,x, ``Important Notice: Registration for the Pairs`` ``Players whose teams are involved in the knock-out stages will all join the Pairs Championship, providing that they have entered according to the requirements listed above, that is, not later than 4.30 pm on Wednesday 8th October. Losing quarter-finalists will drop in to the Pairs at the semi-final stage, all others directly to the final.`` (any two members of same NBO (Teams coaches included) born 1980 or later`