8 Things You May Have Forgotten from the 2008 Beijing Olympics

By Grace Mulamba & Bridget O’Donnell

This week marks a decade since the 2008 Olympics commenced in Beijing. The 2008 games were a milestone achievement for China, and presented the perfect opportunity for the country to strut its stuff on the world stage. 

Here we look back at some of the most noteworthy things you may have forgotten from the 2008 Olympics.

1. The Incredible Opening Ceremony

Image via Wikimedia Commons

The first ever Olympic Games to be hosted in China kicked off with a stunning opening ceremony directed by acclaimed Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou at the Bird's Nest. The event started at 8pm sharp on August 8, 2008. (That's a lot of eights).

The ceremony was a visual feast, featuring fireworks, acrobatic performances and a torch lighting by legendary Chinese gymnast Li Ning. 

Li Ning lights the Olympic Torch. Image via Wikimedia Commons

Yao Ming, meanwhile, carried the national flag as he led Team China in the Parade of Nations.

Yao Ming carries the national flag for Team China during the opening ceremony of the 2008 Olympics. Image via Wikimedia Commons

Take a look at the highlight reel below:

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2. 'Beijing Welcomes You'

In the lead up to the games, there was lots of hype within China. For the 100-day countdown, a music video for the feature song 'Beijing Welcomes You' was released. The star-studded video featured Jackie Chan, Eason Chan and more.

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3. Michael Phelps Wins All the Golds

Image via Bryan Allison/Flickr

2008 was a big year for some of the participating athletes at the Olympics. At the Water Cube, American swimmer Michael Phelps cemented his Olympic legacy by picking up a whopping eight gold medals in aquatic events, setting a new record for individual gold medal haul in a single Olympic Games. 

The 2008 Beijing Olympics medals. Each was designed with a ring of jade. Image via Wikimedia Commons

A massive international audience — estimated at over 4.3 billion — tuned in to watch record-breaking moments from Phelps and other athletes throughout the games. During the 2008 Olympics, China earned a total of 100 medals: 51 gold, 21 silver and 28 bronze. These numbers represent China's largest ever medal tally. The event was also first time for several countries to appear on the medal table.

4. Usain Bolt 

Over at the Bird's Nest, Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt broke several records, winning the men's 100-meter dash with the ground-breaking time of 9.59 seconds, 200-meter race in 19.30 seconds and the 4x100-meter relay in 37.10 seconds. Bolt set new world records in all three races.

Bolt memorably celebrated early during his 100-meter dash win, pumping his chest before he even crossed the finish line.

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5. The Lip-Synching Singer

Screengrab via Tencent Video

There were plenty of positive aspects of the 2008 games that left a lasting legacy for China in Olympics history. But momentarily putting this notion aside, there were some interesting controversies that took place throughout the three-week sporting event.

One of the more notable scandals took place on the evening of the opening ceremony, when reports emerged that Lin Miaoke, an adorable nine-year-old Chinese singer, had lip-synched her entire performance. The original audio for the ceremony had actually come from seven-year-old Yang Peiyi. 

After the scandal sparked international outrage, Beijing's Olympic organizing committee found itself scrambling for an explanation.

Chen Qigang, chief music director of the games, would later tell a local Beijing radio station how a top government official had wanted Lin’s voice to "change." In support of the idea, Chen said: "We combined the perfect voice and the perfect performance. The reason was for the national interest.” 

6. Gymnastics Drama

Deng Linlin of Team China. Image via Kinney Turtle/Flickr

There was also another big controversy over the ages of the athletes on the Chinese women's gymnastics team. Typically, Olympic gymnasts are at least 16 years of age. The rules of the games require for there to be proof of age by documentation.

But before the 2008 games even took place, journalists around the globe began questioning the eligibility of Yang Yilin, He Kexin and Jiang Yuyuan as Olympic gymnasts because they were listed as being younger than 16 on a Chinese sports registration form. 

Lu Shanzen, China’s Coach, defended her trainees, saying at the time: “It’s unfair that people keep saying the Chinese are too young to compete. If they think they can tell someone’s age just by looking at them, well, if you look at the foreign athletes, they have so much more muscles than the Chinese. They are so strong. Do you then say that they are doping?” 

Following an investigation by International Gymnastics Federation a month after the Olympics concluded, members of the Chinese team were exonerated. 

Meanwhile, Team China battled with Team USA for the gold in the women’s gymnastics events throughout the games. China took the gold for the team all-around, while the US dominated in the individual all-around events.

Bronze medalist Yang Yilin (left), gold medalist Nastia Liukin (center) and silver medalist Shawn Johnson (right) on the podium at the women’s individual all-around competition. Image via Wikimedia Commons

7. The Bird's Nest and Water Cube

Image via Wikimedia Commons

In the spirit of the Olympic Games, Beijing experienced massive infrastructure and transport renovations, establishment of new facilities, institutional advancement and the birthing of a new volunteer culture. 

The Birds Nest Stadium and Water Cube stadiums were two examples of Beijing’s dedication to creating an honorable image before the world. Both centers were specially designed for the Olympics with Chinese traditional values in mind. 

Image via Wikimedia Commons

The National Stadium, aka the 'Bird’s Nest,' was the chief stage for football and track and field. The appearance of the stadium was fashioned to appear as a larger-than-life nest that nurses humans, with the tallest point being 68.5 meters (225 feet). These days, the stadium is still used for international and domestic sports competitions, as well as other recreational activities.  

The National Aquatics Center, otherwise known as the 'Water Cube,' was another iconic structure built for the 2008 games. Shaped like an ice cube, the theme of the building revolved around Chinese conceptualizations of a round heaven and square Earth.

Unlike these two Olympic stadiums, not all are still in use.

READ MORE: 2008 Beijing Olympic Venues - Then & Now

8. The Fuwa

Image via Wikimedia Commons

Remember the Fuwa? The 2008 Olympic mascots were spotted everywhere. Their names — Bei Bei, Jing Jing, Huan Huan, Ying Ying and Ni Ni — were a play on the phrase of 'Beijing Welcomes You.'

The 2008 Beijing Olympics went down as one of the biggest games in recent memory. Luckily, we may have a chance to experience something like this again when the Olympics return to Beijing in 2022, making the capital the first city to host both the summer and winter Games.

[Cover image via Wikimedia Commons]

To read the latest updates on the 2022 Games, click “Read more” (阅读原文) below.