How China opened up to the world

Athletes take part in the closing ceremony of the 2008 Olympics at the Bird's Nest Stadium last night.

BEIJING // China concluded their debut as Olympic hosts yesterday after 16 days of near-flawless logistics and superlative athletic achievement that co-existed awkwardly with the government's wariness of dissent and free speech. To a large extent, the emergent superpower got what they had craved from these long-sought Games - a dominant effort by their athletes to top the gold-medal standings for the first time and almost glitch-free organising that showcased world-class venues and cheerful volunteers to the largest peaceful influx of foreign visitors.

As a bonus, not just one but two athletes gave arguably the greatest performances in Olympic history - Michael Phelps with his eight gold medals in swimming, Jamaica's Usain Bolt with three golds and three world records in the sprints. The International Olympic Committee (IOC), whose selection of Beijing as host back in 2001 was widely questioned, insisted their choice had been vindicated. "The world learned more about China, and China learned more about the rest of world," the IOC president Jacques Rogge said.

"The IOC and the Olympic Games cannot force changes on sovereign nations or solve all the ills of the world. But we can contribute to positive change through sport." Rogge and the IOC were criticised by human rights groups for their reluctance to challenge the hosts over press freedom and the detention of dissidents. Athletes shied away from making political statements, and "protest zones" established in Beijing went unused as the authorities refused to issue permits for them.

China invested more than US$40 billion (Dh146.9bn) in the Games, which they viewed as a chance to show the world their dramatic economic progress. TV figures achieved record ratings in China and the US, and the Games' presence online was by far the most extensive ever. Rogge said these Olympics would leave a lasting, positive legacy for China - improved transportation infrastructure, more grassroots interest in recreational sports, a more aggressive approach to curbing air pollution and other environmental problems.

Smog that enveloped the city early in the Games gave way to mostly clear skies, easing fears that some endurance events might be hazardous for the athletes. Rogge acknowledged that China, despite promises of press freedom during the Games, continued to block access to numerous politically orientated websites. However, he contended that media restrictions were looser during the Olympics than beforehand, "and so we believe the Games had a good influence". Human rights groups disagreed.

Led by Phelps and Bolt, athletes broke 43 world and 132 Olympic records during the Games. Yet Rogge said the most touching moment for him came after the 10metre air pistol event, when the gold medallist Nino Salukvadze of Georgia embraced runner-up Natalia Paderina of Russia as their two countries' armies fought back in Georgia. "That kind of sportsmanship is really remarkable," he said. * AP