2008 Beijing

Beijing 2008

Artistic Gymnastics

Artistic Swimming

Athletics

Badminton

Baseball Softball

Basketball

Bobsleigh

Boxing

Canoe Sprint

Cycling Mountain Bike

Cycling Road

Cycling Track 

Diving

Equestrian

Football

Handball

Hockey

Judo

Marathon Swimming

Modern Pentathlon

Rowing

Sailing

Shooting

Swimming

Table Tennis

Taekwondo

Tennis

Trampoline

Triathlon

Volleyball

Water Polo

Weightlifting

Wrestling

Argentina

Australia

Belarus

Belgium

Brazil

Canada

China (->1952, now People's Republic of China)

Croatia

Cuba

Denmark

Egypt

France

Georgia

Germany

Ghana

Great Britain

Guam

Hungary

Iceland

India

Italy

Jamaica

Japan

Kenya

Luxembourg

Malaysia

Mexico

Mongolia

Montenegro

Netherlands

New Zealand

Nigeria

P. R. China

Poland

Portugal

Slovenia

South Africa

Spain

Sweden

Switzerland

Timor-Leste

Türkiye

Ukraine

United States

Uzbekistan

Vietnam

Zambia

China's hosting of the Olympics was an incredible achievement of design and architecture that unified a diverse country behind the Games.

Beijing 2008 | Olympic Games

Originals

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Design Focus: Beijing 2008

The greatest French defensive handball player ever won two Olympic gold medals. Today, he coaches the French national team to new heights.

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Where are they now? Didier Dinart’s legend lives on

The status quo of women's softball is shaken when Japan beat the formidable USA team to earn Olympic gold at Beijing 2008.

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Japan Topple Softball's Champions in Beijing 2008

Born and raised in France, slalom canoeist Benjamin Boukpeti opted to represent Togo in Beijing and won a historic Olympic medal

Benjamin BOUKPETI

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How Benjamin Boukpeti returned home and won Togo’s only Olympic medal

Four-time Olympic medallist, coach, and NBC commentator Ato Boldon remembers Usain Bolt’s incredible world record breaking performance at Beijing 2008.

The Trinidad and Tobago sprint legend has been at the stadium every time Jamaica’s Bolt has broken a record. He says that moment was simply iconic.

As we celebrate the 10th anniversary of a race that won’t be forgotten, we spoke to Boldon about Bolt’s untied shoelace, the man who finished second Richard Thompson, and the celebrations that changed the way people think of running forever.

The Olympic Channel Podcast comes out every Wednesday. Think like an Olympian. SUBSCRIBE NOW.

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Back to Beijing 2008: 10 years after Usain Bolt’s 100m win shook the world

Over the course of 47 years, Mike Krzyzewski assembled one of the greatest coaching resumes in basketball history. The former U.S. Army officer, who also played for the Army basketball team, led Duke University to five national championships and 15 ACC tournament titles, and retired with the most college coaching

Mike Krzyzewski led Team USA to three Olympic gold medals as head coach

Mike Krzyzewski exclusive: 'Coach K' on what makes USA Basketball unique, Steve Kerr, his Olympic experience and Paris 2024

In the next two years, Belgium’s men’s hockey team could enter into the pantheon of sporting legends. Of course, one may argue that they are already there. They are, after all, the defending Olympic and world champions. Multiple nations have achieved the feat of winning Olympic and world hockey gold

Hockey | Odisha Men's World Cup | Bhubaneswar - Rourkela

TOKYO, JAPAN - AUGUST 05: Team Belgium celebrate with their Gold Medals during the Victory Ceremony following the Men's Gold Medal match between Australia and Belgium on day thirteen of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Oi Hockey Stadium on August 05, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)

Belgium men's hockey

The greatest ever? Belgium’s quest for hockey immortality

Croatian sailors Pavle Kostov and Petar Cupać had a huge impact on the final standings of the men&rsquo;s 49er competition at Beijing 2008, despite not participating in the medal race\.

“True legends showing true sportsmanship”: when Croatia’s sailors helped their Danish “mates for life” win gold

&ldquo;Kobe was an outstanding and true Olympic champion,&rdquo; said IOC President Thomas Bach\. &ldquo;He embraced the power of sport to change people&rsquo;s lives\. After retiring from the game he loved so much, he continued to support the Olympic Movement and was an inspiration for the Olympic Games LA 2028\.&nbsp; We

Olympic family mourns the loss of Kobe Bryant

The Canadian finished fourth at Beijing 2008, after which she suffered burnout and depression, only for her determination to become her country&rsquo;s first female Olympic weightlifting medallist to drive her on for four more years\. A decision that was vindicated when she claimed bronze at London 2012\.

Girard stunned to be receiving two medals after triple disqualification

The quartet&rsquo;s joy was unconfined in 2008, but nine years later it emerged that Nesta Carter, a member of the Jamaican gold medal\-winning team, had tested positive for a banned substance when samples from Beijing were reanalysed, and Japan were moved up to second behind Trinidad &amp; Tobago\.

Japan’s relay squad celebrate reallocated silver in front of joyous home crowd

Sayers said:&nbsp;&ldquo;I remember standing in the stadium thinking, I&rsquo;m pretty sure I should be \[in\] third place\.&rdquo;

Sayers has moment on the podium 11 years after missing out in Beijing

Steiner is the subject of the Olympic Channel&rsquo;s fourth episode in the new season of &ldquo;Legends Live On&rdquo;, which also features athlete Hicham El Guerrouj, who won the 1,500/5,000m double at the Olympic Games 2004; six\-time fencing champion Valentina Vezzali; and Uschi Disl, winner of nine biathlon medals over five

Steiner forges new life after highs and lows of Olympic career 

Chinese tennis has seen a boom in popularity thanks in particular to four notable Chinese female players: Zheng Jie, Li Na, Peng Shuai and Yan Zi\. All four women have enjoyed significant success on the world stage\.&nbsp;Li Na, arguably the greatest Chinese tennis player to date, won the 2011 French

Tennis and basketball grow in China following Olympic Games 2008 

Usain Bolt turned up in Beijing as the 22\-year\-old world record holder in the 100m, but without a major gold medal to his name\. He left as a legend, winning both the 100m and 200m in new world record times, and almost everyone knows what followed: three more Olympic golds

Stars of Beijing 2008 – where are they now? 

Moments that defined Beijing 2008

Beijing became synonymous with some of the most historic Olympic sporting performances, like Michael Phelps&rsquo; record eight gold medals, as well as the start of Usain Bolt&rsquo;s Olympic reign in the 100m and 200m events\.

Beijing 2008 celebrates 10-year anniversary 

&ldquo;One of the two biggest regrets of my career &ndash; the other was never winning Olympic gold in my career &ndash; is that I wasn&rsquo;t able to take part in the opening ceremonies in Athens, Beijing and Rio\. The taekwondo events are always scheduled for the end of the programme,

Gwladys Epangue: ‘A unique moment of sharing’ 

The great thing about track and field is that it comes in the second week of the Games so that means we have the opportunity to go to the Opening Ceremony because we have plenty of time to recover\. But the strange thing about being an athlete at the opening

Debbie Ferguson-McKenzie: “It felt like an out-of-body experience”

Entering the Stadium: &ldquo;absolutely enormous&rdquo;

Lucie Décosse: “We felt like something really special was going down!”

I was nominated to be flag\-bearer in 2008, which was my first Games, and so I really hadn&rsquo;t expected it\. The honour was given to me by the chef\-de\-mission of our team and it was such a privilege\. It was such a surprise for me when I was told that

BEIJING - AUGUST 08:  Ricardo Blas of Guam carries his country's flag during the Opening Ceremony for the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics at the National Stadium on August 8, 2008 in Beijing, China.  (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)

Judoka Ricardo Blas Jr: “It was like I was being blasted by a Jedi knight or something!” 

Athens in 2004 was my first Olympic Games and I was desperate to go to the Opening Ceremony\. There was just one sticking point though, I was competing very soon after the Opening Ceremony and so the British Olympic Association officials weren&rsquo;t happy about me being a part of the

BIRMINGHAM, UNITED KINGDOM - JULY 23:  British Olympic badminton player Gail Emms poses for a picture during a press day at the NIA on July 23 2008 in Birmingham England  (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

Gail Emms: “That’s what the Opening Ceremony does to you!”

Born in the village of Hazelton, British Columbia, and one of five siblings in a family of Chinese and Vietnamese extraction, Carol Huynh took up wrestling at the age of 15\.

Meet Carol Huynh, Canada’s first Olympic women’s wrestling champion

In the video below, van der Weijden talks exclusively about that memorable day, sharing his thoughts with the same passion that propelled him to Olympic glory in China\.

Maarten van der Weijden: A look inside the mind of an Olympic Champion

Olympic Review continues its countdown to the 2012 Games with exclusive interviews with stars of three more of the 26 sports on the programme, who are targeting gold in London\. Naomi Van As, the golden girl of Dutch hockey looks ahead to defending their Olympic crown in London in two

Naomi VAN AS

Golden Opportunity - Naomi Van As, hockey

Olympic Review continues its countdown to the 2012 Games with exclusive interviews with stars of three more of the 26 sports on the programme, who are targeting gold in London\. The Brazilian Juliana Felisberta Silva, FIBV World Tour Beach Volleyball champion for four of the past five seasons, missed the

Golden Opportunity: Juliana Felisberta Silva, Beach Volleyball 

The President of the Beijing 2008 Organising Committee \(BOCOG\), Liu Qi, today received the Olympic Order in Gold from the hands of International Olympic Committee&rsquo;s \(IOC\) President Jacques Rogge in recognition of all the hard work that went into putting on these truly exceptional Games\. This was China&rsquo;s last gold

BEIJING - AUGUST 24:  A general view showing the Olympic flame during the Closing Ceremony for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 24, 2008 in Beijing, China.  (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)

Thank You Beijing

Thank You Beijing!

Thirty\-six years after his first participation in the Olympic Games in Munich in 1972, Canada’s Ian Millar became a silver medallist in team show jumping\. In the saddle on

HONG KONG, CHINA - AUGUST 18:  The silver medal winning team from Canada (L-R) Mac Cone, Ian Millar,Eric Lamaze,Jill Henselwood celebrate after the Team Jumping Competition held at the Hong Kong Olympic Equestrian Venue in Sha Tin during day 10 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 18, 2008 in Hong Kong, China.  (Photo by Julian Herbert/Getty Images)

An Example of Passion and Perseverance

The International Olympic Committee \(IOC\) is pleased to announce the list of the flag bearers for the 204 National Olympic Committees \(NOCs\) participating in the Closing Ceremony of the Games of the XXIX Olympiad tonight in Beijing\.

BEIJING - AUGUST 24:  Flagbearers representing countries from around the world are seen at the National Stadium during the Closing Ceremony for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 24, 2008 in Beijing, China.  (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)

Flag Bearers for the Closing Ceremony

Every country competing in the Olympic Games has particular events in which it excels, and for Hungary the biggest event of the Games is undoubtedly water polo\. So strong is the team’s record in the event that the country’s men’s team has won gold medals on eight separate occasions since

BEIJING - AUGUST 24:  Team Hungary celebrate after they won the gold medal by defeating the United States during the Men's Gold Medal Water Polo Match at the Yingdong Natatorium of National Olympic Sports Center during Day 16 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 24, 2008 in Beijing, China.  (Photo by Adam Pretty/Getty Images)

Hungary secure stunning water polo hat-trick

After three weeks of intense drama and spectacle highlighted by the remarkable exploits of Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps, there was very much a party atmosphere during the closing ceremony at the Olympic Games in Beijing\. While the opening ceremony was marked by&nbsp;precision and organisation accompanied by the huge pressure

BEIJING - AUGUST 24:  Fireworks ignite over the National Stadium during the Closing Ceremony for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 24, 2008 in Beijing, China.  (Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images)

Party atmosphere as curtain drawn on Beijing

China‘s medal sweep has so far marked the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games\. However, other countries also managed a breakthrough – not as impressive as the Chinese domination \- but still important for their respective countries\.

Olympic firsts - new countries on the Olympic map

Sport — Amazing Venues, Amazing Results

Beijing Olympics : Opening Ceremonyillustration Illustratie, National Stadium Stadion, Birdsnest, Olympic Flame Vlam Flamme,  Olymische Spelen, Jeux Olympique /(C)Tim De Waele   (Photo by Tim De Waele/Getty Images)

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Beijing Games:  Facts and Figures

With its traditional crown in artistic gymnastics slipping further during the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, Russia sought solace in its continuing mastery of the rhythmic discipline of the event\. Without a single medal to show on the artistic side it had dominated throughout the years, it fell to a

BEIJING - AUGUST 23:  Evgeniya Kanaeva of Russia competes in the Individual All-Around final held at the University of Science and Technology Beijing Gymnasium on Day 15 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 23, 2008 in Beijing, China.  (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)

Kanayeva waltzes to rhythmic gymnastics gold

There was a strange array of feelings as the baseball tournament at the Olympic Games in Beijing got under way\. At stake was one of the most high intensity and hotly\-contested gold medals of any Olympics, and yet the competitors knew that it would be the last time the event

BEIJING - AUGUST 23:  Chong Taehyon #21 and catcher Kang Minho #37 of Korea celebrate after Korea turned a double play to end the game and give them a 3-2 win against Cuba during the men's gold medal baseball game held at Wukesong Baseball Field on Day 15 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 23, 2008 in Beijing, China.  (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images)

Korea ends baseball’s Olympic era with Cuban upset

Olympic hockey celebrates its centenary in Beijing, having first been played at the London Games of 1908\. This year’s hockey tournament is fast approaching its denouement, with the women’s final being won yesterday by the Netherlands against China, followed today by the men’s final today between Germany and Spain\.

BEIJING - AUGUST 22:  Fu Baorong #8 of China and Maartje Paumen #17 of Netherlands vie for the ball during the women's gold medal hockey match at the Olympic Green Hockey Field on Day 14 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 22, 2008 in Beijing, China.  (Photo by Lars Baron/Bongarts/Getty Images)

Champions of the stick and ball

are the words engraved yesterday into the marble of the column on the Museum forecourt dedicated to the Summer Olympic Games\. This is the eighth time since the Museum opened in 1993 that the master craftsman has come to the Museum &ndash; systematically every two years &ndash; to add a

It’s Beijing’s turn to enter the Olympic history books

Olympic Solidarity is there to ensure that athletes with talent, regardless of their financial status, have an even chance of reaching the Olympic Games, or even winning an Olympic medal\. Working with the most needy National Olympic Committees, Olympic Solidarity develops assistance programmes and offers scholarships to athletes\. Over the

Beijing Olympics : Closing Ceremonyillustration Illustratie, Flag Drapeau Vlag Olympic, National Stadium Stadion, Birds Nest, Olymische Spelen, Jeux Olympique, (C)Tim De Waele   (Photo by Ola Fagerstrom/Getty Images)

Olympic Solidarity bringing in its share of the gold

Few athletes went into the cauldron of competition at the Bird&rsquo;s Nest stadium in the 2008 Olympic Games as strong a favourite as the elegant Croatian high\-jumper Blanka Vlasic\. Unbeaten for over a year, the 25\-year\-old Vlasic had dominated international competition over the preceding season\. She won the world title

BEIJING - AUGUST 23:  Tia Hellebaut of Belgium celebrates a successful jump in the Women's High Jump Final held at the National Stadium on Day 15 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 23, 2008 in Beijing, China.  (Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images)

Hellebaut raises the bar in battle with Vlasic

It’s not often that Olympic competition boils down to a race for the silver medal, but when you dominate a sport like Kerri Walsh and Misty\-May Treanor did in 2008 then second place is pretty much all you can hope for\. The two Americans were so dominant in women’s beach

Perfect Walsh, May-Treanor star on the sand

One of the last sports to get under way at the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, taekwondo is also one of the most recent additions to the Olympic programme, making its entrance as a full medal sport only in 2000, featuring four weight categories for men and four for women\.

BEIJING - AUGUST 23:  Nina Solheim of Norway (blue) fights Chew Chan Che of Malaysia (red) in the Women +67kg Quarterfinals held at the University of Science and Technology Beijing Gymnasium on Day 15 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 23, 2008 in Beijing, China.  (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

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The art of controlled aggression

In January 2017, Nesta CARTER of Jamaica, competing in the Athletics Men's 4x100m Relay event, in which he ranked first and for which he was awarded the gold medal, has been disqualified from the Games of the XXIX Olympiad\.

BEIJING - AUGUST 22:  Asafa Powell of Jamaica moves away from team mate Usain Bolt on his way to victory in the Men's 4 x 100m Relay Final at the National Stadium on Day 14 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 22, 2008 in Beijing, China.  (Photo by Mark Dadswell/Getty Images)

Jamaican foursome break world record

Sheila Taormina is the first athlete at the Olympic&nbsp;Games to compete in three different sports: swimming in 1996; triathlon in 2000 and 2004 and today she is competing in Beijing in the modern&nbsp;pentathlon\. AFPTV met Sheila during he preparations for her incredible triple\.

An incredible triple

The flame\-haired Western Australian, whose Commonwealth Games title on home soil two years previously had been his only major competition win to that point, showed composure again and again just as it seemed he faced elimination\.

Olympic Games Beijing 2008

Beijing 2008Stories

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