The XXIX Olympic Games opened in Beijing, China on August 8, 2008, and closed on August 24. A record 204 nations joined the competition, and Mongolia, Bahrain and Panama won gold medals for the first time. The games featured 302 events; 10,942 athletes competed in them. The opening ceremonies, staged in a stadium built for the event and nicknamed the "Bird's Nest," featured elaborate choreographed drumming, fireworks and special effects.
Basics
The United States barely edged China for the total number of medals won at the Beijing Olympics, winning 110, just 10 more than China. The United States won 23 of its medal in track and field.
Track Events
Jamaican women proved themselves the fastest women in the world, sweeping the medals in the 100 m race. One of the stars of the Beijing Olympics, Usain Bolt of Jamaica, won the men's 100 m and the 200 m races, breaking world records in both events. He also helped his teammates win the 4x100 m relay. U.S. team members Allyson Felix, Sanya Richards, Monique Henderson and Mary Wineberg won gold in the 4x400 m women's relay. Russia took the silver medal and the Jamaican women earned the bronze medal. Angelo Taylor, Jeremy Wariner, Lashawn Merritt and David Neville won the gold medal in the men's 4x400 relay race.
Field Events
Northern Europe dominated the javelin event. Andreas Thorkildsen of Norway won gold. Silver went to Latvia and Bronze to Finland. The Czech Republic, Russia and Germany won gold, silver and bronze for the women's javelin throw. Estonia, Poland and Lithuania took the top three spots for the men's discus event. Shot putters are usually strong and large athletes. Poland's Tomasz Majewski is 6' 8" and weighed 286 lbs. when he beat Christian Cantwell of the United States for the gold medal. Russia took both the gold and the bronze medals in the high jump while Great Britain won the silver. Panama, South Africa and Cuba won gold, silver and bronze in the long jump competition.
Decathlon/Marathon
The decathlon is a two-day event, consisting of 10 separate events. On the first day, entrants compete in the 100 m dash, long jump, shot put, high jump and 400 m race. The second day consists of the 110 m hurdles race, the discus, the pole vault, the javelin and 1,500 m race. Bryan Clay of the United States won the gold medal in the decathlon. Andrei Krauchanka from Belarus and Leonel Suarez of Cuba took the silver and the bronze. The marathon tests the endurance of runners for more than 26 miles. Kenya won the gold, Morocco won the silver and Ethiopia won the bronze in the men's marathon. Romania, Kenya and China won gold, silver and bronze, respectively, in the women's marathon race.
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