The Beijing Olympic Games in 2008 were billed as China’s “coming out party” to the world. And what a party it was. The sound of 2,008 drummers pounding out a beat in perfect unison reverberated through the enormous “Bird’s Nest” stadium during the opening ceremony. Fireworks exploded above the capital from the Forbidden City, where China’s last emperors ruled, to the Great Hall of the People, where the Communist Party’s leaders now meet. An adorable young girl lip-synced “Ode to the Motherland”, which the actual singer, deemed not quite pretty enough, had recorded earlier backstage.
Everything about the spectacle was designed to inspire awe. From the scale to the synchronicity to the rendering of Chinese culture and history, all executed flawlessly in front of an audience of global leaders that included George W Bush and Vladimir Putin. Officially, the slogan was “One World One Dream”, but in truth the Games were more about what the future leader Xi Jinping would call the “China Dream” – reclaiming the country’s rightful place on the world stage as a great and respected power.
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