OPINION> Commentary
The curtain is rising
(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-08-25 07:40

The Olympic crowds dispersing.

After the sentimental farewell party last night, Beijing woke up this morning to its "post-Olympic" reality.

First-rate facilities. First-rate organization. That is what they say about the Beijing Games.

Let us add to that first-rate athletic performance. In addition to the spectacular infrastructures like the Bird's Nest and Water Cube, as well as outstanding organizing efficiency, the 2008 Games is to be remembered for such great names as Michael Phelps, Usain Bolt, and Yelena Isinbayeva.

But this Olympiad is not just about record-breaking shows. From time to time in the past days and nights, we found our heartstrings struck by tear-drawing stories participating athletes brought to us from outside the competition venues.

We admire Chusovitina Oksana, the 33-year-old gymnast, not only for being a tenacious athlete, but more for the selfless maternal love she stands for.

And how can we not applaud for Dmitry Sautin, and Matt Emmons, who showed us the power of passion and the charm of sportsmanship? We could name many more.

With the ultimate accounting reports pending, we are yet to know how the Games fared economically. But for the spiritual enrichment it bestowed on us, the Games is worth every penny invested.

The Beijing Games was an invaluable enlightening session, for the Chinese, for the rest in the Olympic crowds, if not that of the world.

Hein Verbruggen, chairman of the International Olympic Committee Coordination Commission for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, was right in saying that the Games has brought to China a lot more than economic benefits. The more important benefit, as he observed, is deeper popular understanding of what the Olympics is about.

And we saw it. From inside the venues, and outside.

We saw them rejoicing over every medal Chinese athletes pocketed. We heard them cheer tirelessly for guest teams.

The Games indeed lived up to Pierre de Coubertin's ideal to build bridges of understanding. This could not be more evident from the Chinese spectators' heart-warming applause greeting the Iraqi delegation at the opening ceremony, as well as the ordinary netizens' spontaneous initiative to donate for the Iraqi athletes when they saw one of them wearing second-hand running shoes.

So was it in the $50,000 Usain Bolt donated to young victims of the Wenchuan earthquake.

It is good to learn from some of our overseas guests that they finally found out China is different from what they thought, and the Chinese do not look identical. Some of them can even tell one Chinese from another by appearance.

It is even better to know some of them came to be aware that the Chinese are just like them, common human beings who can laugh or cry.

This is the power of the Olympics. It brings the world to Beijing, and Beijing to the world.

What we would like to tell our overseas guests, however, is that Beijing is too small, and 17 days are too short.

The Games was a historic climax of three decades of China opening to the world. It was also a moment for the world to take a new look at China.

The good thing is, the Chinese government has assured us all the good things will stay. And the rest of the world showed us they can appreciate good things about China.

The curtain is just rising.

(China Daily 08/25/2008 page7)