10 most interesting events in Beijing Olympics

[ 25 Aug 2008 18:12 ]

Baku. Kenan Hasanov - APA-SPORT. Several interesting events took place in the 29th Beijing Olympic Games. APA-SPORT has picked 10 most interesting among them:

1. International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Jacques Rogge forecasted that 40 out of 4.500 doping tests would result positively at the Games. It was later found out that only 6 sportsmen and a horse failed the tests. 26 out of 3.500 doping tests had resulted positively in Athens Olympics.

2. Beijing Olympics included 14.268 sportsmen and officials from 204 countries. There were 350 athletes who received Chinese names.

3. The facilities in Olympic village will be put for sale after the Games. The organizers hope Beijing residents will be interested in the facilities as the village is located in a good part of the city.

4. Beijing Games included 36 world records 25 of which in swimming. There were 5 records in athletics, 2 in cycling and 4 in weightlifting.

5. Football is a kid of sport with the largest audience. The organizers announced that attendance at the football matches broke an Olympic record, with 2.14 million - 1.4 million for the men’s games and 740,000 for the women’s games.

6. Russian rhythmic gymnastics team scored their third Olympic gold medal in a row both in individual and group competitions under coach Irina Viner.

7. Antoinett Joyce Guedia Mouafo of Cameroon was the youngest athlete of the tournament. She will be 13 in the 21st October. Mouafo joined women’s 50m freestyle relay. 13-aged Dwayne Benjamin Didon of Seychelles who competed in the Men’s 50m Freestyle Heat was the youngest male sportsman at the Games. Japanese rider Mieko Jagi, 58, was the oldest competitor in Olympics.

8. Of 204 listed flag-bearers in the opening ceremony 61 were track and field athletes. The other flag carriers were swimmers (19), judo wrestlers (17), weightlifters (12) and wrestlers (10).

9. The Beijing Olympic Games wasthe biggest broadcast event in the Olympic history. approximately 4.5 billion people watched live broadcast of the Games which advances 2000 Sydney (3.6 billion) and 2004 Athens (3.9 billion).