2004年奥运会闭幕式上张艺谋导演的“雅典八分钟”，给世人留下了深刻的印象，国人对此也褒贬不一，那么，北京奥运会闭幕式上，伦敦将交出怎样的一份答卷呢？伦敦奥组委日前宣布，将在北京奥运会上由Zoo Nation舞蹈组合表演Hip-Hop风格的霹雳舞。伦敦奥组委认为，霹雳舞能展示英国的多元化以及活力，不过不少批评人士认为霹雳舞表演不符合英国的特色。

Controversies arose as a British hip-hop dance group was announced to show their break-dancing skills in Beijing during the August 24 closing ceremonies, as a handover to London which will host the 2012 Summer Games.

London-based ZooNation will join the Royal Ballet and disabled dance group Candoco in an eight-minute performance, representing British "national identity" at the Beijing Olympics closing ceremonies, according to Mail Online, the Daily Mail website.

The decision, described by London Olympic organizers as "the best of British, with a range of talent," triggered off controversy from both the United Kingdom and China as well.

Patrick Marnion, a Daily Mail critic, said the ZooNation show was one of the "liveliest, most exciting, youthful addition of the West End in many a year," on the news website.

But to some, the urban dance squad has nothing to do with the UK. In their minds, hip-hop is essentially from the United States.

"The visual language belongs to America and it is something Britain has no particular purchase on," Mail Online citing branding expert Peter York.

Chinese experts were also divided on their views on ZooNation's show at the upcoming Beijing Olympics.

Ou Jianping, the director of Foreign Dance Studies at the Dance Research Institute of the China Arts Academy, said he was not surprised at the London's Olympic Organizers' choice.

"The organizers' choice anticipates the future taste of London," Beijing-based newspaper The First cited Ou as saying. "Though the Royal Ballet is elegant, it will not represent the popular taste of the British."

Zheng Xiaojiu, an Olympic researcher with Renmin University, held different views. "The United Kingdom is renowned for the culture of gentlemen, and therefore hip hop, a kind of dynamic hot dance, can not show the depth of its culture."

It is Olympic practice that at the close of each Games, the next host city has eight minutes to put on a performance.

Organizers of the Beijing Olympics produced a group of 12 modern singers clad in red short cheong-sams at the 2004 Athens Games, while the Australians kangaroos rode bicycles to mark the handover at the 1996 Atlanta Games.

（英语点津Celene编辑）