难度指数：★★★★☆

Beijing wished for its Olympic venues to be an expansion of its history and culture, both of which are firmly set on the spine of the city, a 7.7 km axis line running right through the emperor's seat at the Forbidden City, the middle of Tian'anmen Square, the Drum and Bell towers and Yongdingmen.

The north-south axis was believed to bring eternal stability, prompting designers of the Bird's Nest and the Water Cube to position them on either side of it.

In doing so, they have integrated modern ideas with the deep-rooted spirit of the Middle Kingdom.

Since launching the Beijing 2008 Olympic Marketing Plan in September 2003, a total of 63 enterprises have become sponsors of the Beijing Games, including 12 worldwide Olympic partners.

BOCOG's deal with sports equipment supplier adidas covers 18 sports, and more than 6,000 officially licensed Olympic products have hit the market.

China will field its largest Olympic team to date when about 570 athletes contest 28 sports in Beijing.

But Chinese sports officials are trying to downplay predictions that the nation will scoop the most gold medals, affirming US and Russia as sporting powerhouses.

At the 2004 Athens Games, 407 Chinese athletes participated in 26 sports and finished second on the medal tally after the US.

Taking into account China's average purchasing power, BOCOG ensured a low-price policy for Beijing Olympic and Paralympic tickets.

Opening ceremony prices were capped at 5,000 yuan ($641) per head, while the lowest price to a sports competition was 30 yuan ($4).

Closing ceremony tickets ranged from 150-3,000 yuan ($19-385), preliminary competition tickets from 30-300 yuan ($4-39) and tickets to the finals cost between 60 and 1,000 yuan ($8-128).

BOCOG also reserved about 14 percent of all domestically sold tickets for students at the handsome price of 5 yuan ($0.6) and 10 yuan ($1.2) for preliminaries and finals respectively.

In striving for excellence, various Chinese national teams have invited foreign coaches to guide them.

More than 30 foreign coaches are currently working with the Chinese Olympic team.

Many among them, such as men's basketball coach Jonas Kazlauskas from Lithuania and synchronized swimming head coach Masayo Imura from Japan, are expected to lead the home outfits to their peak performances.

A group of Chinese-born athletes representing other countries or regions will be an important force in Beijing.

Led by former badminton national team member Zhou Mi and Wang Chen, who represent Hong Kong, and table tennis player Li Jiawei of Singapore, they will pose formidable challenges to their Chinese rivals.

A number of Chinese coaches will lead foreign teams on home soil, such as women's volleyball legend Lang Ping (right), who will lead the US women's team.

Meanwhile, former coach of the Chinese badminton team Li Mao will lead the South Korean team.

Olympic medals are for the first time made of metal and jade. The medals were inlaid with Kunlun jade from China's Qinghai province in a symbol of "respect" and "virtue" in the Chinese tradition.

China's rich culture and history is clearly embodied in the winning designs, which reflect the values of ethics and honor, combined the with Olympic and Paralympic spirit.

People who love Chinese martial arts must not miss the Beijing 2008 Wushu Tournament to be held on the sidelines of the Beijing Olympic Games from Aug 21 to 24 at the Olympic Sports Center Gymnasium.

About 128 athletes from 43 countries and regions will contest. Approved by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the Chinese martial arts competition will feature 15 events, including 10 in Taolu (the routines) and five for Sanshou (fights).

Although not a medal sport, the tournament will be an important showcase and springboard for wushu's wish to join the Olympic family.

It is no coincidence that the Beijing Games begins at 8 pm on the 8th day of the 8th month of '08.

The number 8 has special significance to the Chinese, because 8 in Chinese is pronounced "ba", which sounds a lot like "fa", which means prosperity or wealth. The number 8 is highly favored among the Chinese for its connotations of good luck, fortune and longevity.

北京希望所建造的奥运场馆能作为北京体现其历史和文化的一个延伸，这两者都能在城市的中心标志上得到体现??长达7.7公里的中轴线穿越紫禁城的皇帝龙椅，天安门正中，钟鼓楼和永定门。

这条南北走向的轴线被认为能给国家带来长久的稳定，所以鸟巢和水立方的设计者就把这两个场馆建造在了这条轴线的两边。

他们的做法把传统根深蒂固的中央集权的思想和现代的一些想法很好地整合在了一起。

自从2003年9月2008北京奥运会市场计划启动以来，共有63个企业成为北京奥运会的赞助商，包括12个奥运全球赞助商。

北京奥组委（BOCOG）与运动器材提供商adidas达成协议，为18个项目提供产品。另外有多达6,000多个官方授权的奥运产品已经投放到市场了。

中国将会派出有约570名运动员，涵盖28个体育项目的庞大奥运会代表队伍。

但中国体育官员并没有断然预测中国代表队会拿下最多的金牌，并肯定美国和俄罗斯是两个体育强国。

在2004年的雅典奥运会上，中国代表队的407名健儿参与了26个项目，最终在金牌榜上仅次于美国位居第二。

考虑到中国的平均消费水平，北京奥组委在奥运会和残奥会门票价格上推行低价政策。

开幕式的门票价格最高是每人5,000元人名币（641美元），比赛项目中的门票最低价格是每人30元（4美元）。

闭幕式的门票价格从150到3,000元不等（19到385美元），预赛门票价位从30到300元（4到39美元），决赛的门票价格从60到1,000元不等（8大澳128美元）。

北京奥组委也专为学生预留了14%的门票低价销售，预赛和决赛的门票价格分别为5元（0.6美元）和10元（1.2美元）。

为了为取得佳绩而奋斗，很多的中国国家队伍邀请了一些外国教练来指导训练。

目前在中国的奥运队伍中有30多名外籍教练。

这些教练中有一些将会带领着他们的队伍踏上他们的巅峰征程，例如有来自立陶宛的国家男篮教练尤纳斯?卡兹劳斯卡斯和来自日本的花样游泳队总教练井村雅代。

有一部分的中国籍运动员将代表其他的国家和地区参加奥运会，这对中国来说将会是很强的冲击。

香港代表队将由前国家羽毛球队员周蜜和王晨带队，还有乒乓球选手李佳薇代表新加坡代表队，他们将是中国代表队的劲敌。

一些中国籍的教练将带领他们的队伍在祖国的土地上踏上征程，例如女子排球的传奇人物郎平将会带领美国女子排球队。

同时，前羽毛球国家队教练李矛将带领韩国队参赛。

第一次奥运会的奖牌将会用金属和玉来打造。这些镶嵌着青海昆仑玉的奖牌是中国传统中敬意和美德的象征。

中国丰富的文化和悠久的历史在奖牌的设计上得到体现，它结合了奥运会和残奥会的精神，反映了道德和荣誉的价值。

喜欢武术的朋友千万不要错过从8月21日至24日在奥体中心体育馆举行的北京奥运会之外的一场“2008北京武术比赛”。

有大约来自43个国家的128名运动员将参与比赛。经国际奥委会批准，这次的中国武术比赛拟定为15个单项，套路10项和散打5项。

尽管不是奥运会奖牌项目，但这次的比赛将是武术成为奥运会项目的一个展示机会和重要跳板。

北京奥运会在08年的第八个月份的第八天的晚上八点开幕并不是巧合。

对于中国人来说，8这个数字有着特殊的意义，因为8的中文发音听起来很像“发”，这个字的有繁荣富强之意。因为有着好运和长久的意义，所以8这个数字在中国很受欢迎。