Seven Secrets, Worries Ahead of Olympics

BEIJING ― Lao Wang, a typical Beijing nine-to-five office worker, knows some features about the Beijing Olympics that everyone knows already. Namely, this is the most expensive and by far the largest Olympic Games ever held on the face of the planet. It is also the largest event the Middle Kingdom has held in its proud and often touted 5,000 year history.

By Sunny Lee
Korea Times Correspondent

BEIJING ― Lao Wang, a typical Beijing nine-to-five office worker, knows some features about the Beijing Olympics that everyone knows already. Namely, this is the most expensive and by far the largest Olympic Games ever held on the face of the planet. It is also the largest event the Middle Kingdom has held in its proud and often touted 5,000 year history.

Wang also feels good after knowing that there will be 20 more heads of state from African countries attending the opening ceremony, making a total of nearly 100 world leaders. That sure is another record.

Just like other people in Beijing and unlike foreigners abroad, Wang isn't too enthused to figure out or secretly tape what's going to happen in the opening ceremony. But there are some things in Wang's mind that will please or worry him a lot during the Olympics, depending on how they turn out.

Firstly, the terrorist threat. Just like the majority of Chinese people, Wang takes the security issue very seriously. Wang doesn't understand why some foreign media have been criticizing the Chinese government for its "excessive" safety measures.

Wang believes that the Monday morning attacks in Xinjiang, China's restive Muslim region, where 16 police were killed, clearly prove the serious nature of the job.

Like the majority of Chinese, Wang wishes the Olympics be a safe Olympics. This is his biggest concern.

Secondly, Wang hopes that there won't be rain on Friday, the day of the opening ceremony. Unfortunately, the national weather forecasting bureau has given a bad omen that there will be rain. Wang heard that in Korea the weather forecast is often wrong. He hopes for the same in China.

``My good heaven! Can't you do something about it!'' Wang invokes the celestial power, just like Chinese people did in old days.

Wang also got depressed when he watched a choreographer of the opening ceremony performance on TV saying, "The weather is the most unpredictable and possibly biggest spoiling factor for the performance."

Wang loudly wonders whether the powerful Communist Party can do something about it.

Thirdly, in conjunction with the weather, Wang also hopes that sky will be clear during the two-week long Olympics season. He also hopes that foreigners who come to Beijing will believe what the Chinese government has emphatically said recently: that the smog in Beijing is not caused by air pollution.

Fourthly, Wang earnestly hopes that Liu Xiang, the Chinese gold medallist in the 110-meter hurdles in the 2004 Athens Olympics, gets the crown again. He also hopes that he can control his temper and disappointment if that doesn't happen.

"Anything less is unacceptable," he muses. Just like many other Chinese, Wang attaches a great degree of personal bond to the performance of Chinese athletes. "It will be a shame if Liu doesn't do it for me and for the country.''

For many Chinese, sports are not just sports. It's a war. Humiliated by Western powers in the early 20th century, the Chinese believe the Olympics are "a battlefield on which Chinese athletes should beat economically advanced nations and restore China's confidence," according to a paper, written by a former national-team swimmer, Fan Hong.

In China, being an Olympic gold medallist is a delicate honor. One immediately becomes a national hero, but if one misses it the next time, one becomes a national "traitor."

In China, like many other countries, sports can awaken the raw nationalism in people. Common banners in sports where Chinese teams participate, run slogans such as ``Put your Motherland in your heart as you cast your eyes to the world,'' or "Practice your skills and bring back something for your country."

Fifthly, Wang knows that China will definitely disappoint some countries that hope the Olympics will bring democratic reforms there. Wang isn't that interested in democracy either, claiming people are ``looking at China as a subject to change an old Cold War mentality by the West''.

Sixthly, Wang is one of the 65 percent of people, polled by China Youth Daily, who believe that the most important non-sports aspect of the Olympics is how foreigners view China differently through the Olympics.

Lastly, Wang actually lied when he said that he isn't interested in knowing what will be in the opening ceremony. He thinks about it all the time. In fact, he had a dream last night.

In it, the venerable Confucius showed up and told him a secret about the opening ceremony. Confucius told him that one of his sayings from the Analects will appear in the opening ceremony statement.

"It is a great pleasure to have friends visiting from afar."

Confucius told Wang that this phrase will be used to show the world that China has a long history of openness to the outside world and the Olympics will be a great opportunity to welcome friends from all over the world.

Wang probably wouldn't tell this to friends, who wouldn't believe him. Besides, once leaked to the public, the organizer may change the statement, making Wang look stupid.
So, it will be a well-kept secret for him until Friday night.

boston.sunny@gmail.com