And the Beijing Games' 1st gold goes to...

With only two weeks to go before the Olympics Opening Ceremony, the suspense over who will win the first Olympic medal and in which event has gripped athletes, coaches and fans alike, prompting wild predictions and speculation.

"There was a fortune-telling show on Hong Kong TV predicting that shooting will take the first gold medal," said Ma Wenguang, a senior official for China's weightlifting team.

"But I just took it as a good laugh. The first gold could go to either shooting or weightlifting," Ma told a group of Chinese reporters.