Golden Boy Bows Out

Olympic champion hurdler Liu Xiang walked away from his 110-meter hurdles qualifier with a limp, leaving a nation of heartbroken fans behind in the Bird's Nest, or the National Stadium, on August 18.

"I feel sorry. I could do nothing but pull out of the race," Liu said in an interview with national TV broadcaster CCTV later.

As a prodigy sprinter with the smoothest hurdling technique in the business, Liu's striking win at the Athens Olympics brought him enormous fame, as well as pressure to defend his title at home. In the process, the training aggravated his long-suffering and injured Achilles tendon, a chronic situation for any runner.

Twenty-five-year-old Liu is the first Asian to win an Olympic track event. He broke the world 110 hurdles record in 12.88 seconds in 2006, which was subsequently broken by Cuban Dayron Robles in June 2008.

"I never quit easily. I believe I will come back," Liu told CCTV.

Diving Queen All-time Great

With graceful posture in the air and the smallest of splashes as she hits the water, diving queen Guo Jingjing secured her place as the winner of the women's individual 3 meters springboard at the Beijing Olympics on August 17. Also crowned champion of women's synchronized springboard event on August 10, 27-year-old Guo became China's most prolific Olympic diving medalist, with four golds and two silvers.

Guo, whose looks win her as much praise as her diving, was first crowned at the Athens Games when she was 23. Commenting on her late arrival of this supreme diving honor, Guo said that the long road of preparation over three Olympics had helped build up her mental strength.

Born in Baoding, Hebei Province neighboring Beijing, Guo took up diving at seven. She joined the national team in 1992. At her Olympic debut in Atlanta in 1996, she finished fifth in 10 meters platform. Another four-year effort brought in two silver medals at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Starting from the Athens Games in 2004, Guo has dominated the springboard in almost all competitions with her presence.

Gymnastics Coach Has Midas Touch

Huang Yubin, 50, head coach of the Chinese gymnastics team, has every reason to claim the Beijing Olympic Games a success. Chinese gymnasts grabbed nine of a total 14 golds available, in addition to one silver and four bronze medals.

The astonishing achievement has further consolidated Huang's fame as the man who has the Midas touch for gold medals.

Huang earned China's first men's gymnastics world title in rings in 1980. After the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, Huang retired as a competitor and stayed with the national team to coach young athletes. In the past 24 years, 14 of his students have become world champions.

Chinese gymnastics suffered defeat in the Athens Olympics in 2004, taking home only one gold medal and two bronze medals. As a result, Huang temporarily left as coach. After reclaiming the job in 2006, Huang has been devoted to remolding his team, both technically and psychologically. Chinese gymnasts grabbed eight gold medals at the 2006 World Gymnastics Championships, including a historic women's team title. (Related story on page 20)

"China has done an incredible job in making this Olympics not only successful but with legacies in development that will stay well after the Games."

Wilfried Lemke, special advisor to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and head of the UN delegation at the Beijing Olympics