Friday night Beijing was in splendor. The 29th Olympic Games lifted its veil and a spectacular scene spread out before the eyes of nearly 100,000 spectators as well as billions of television viewers around the world. This is an unforgettable night for Chinese people, a night that is set to constitute a glorious page in Olympic history.
In the opening of the Sydney Games, we were amazed by the mystery and the vitality of Australian aboriginals. In Athens, we marveled at the story of European civilization. This time, at the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics, what people saw was a meeting of western tradition and ancient oriental culture at the Olympic Games. The Beijing Olympic opening was beyond people's expectations. With a profound history and culture as its background, the opening ceremony presented a grand show of China to the world.
This grand show embodies yesterday's ardent yearnings of this nation, today's joy of harvest and great hopes for tomorrow. It is a summary of 5,000 years of cultural splendor and it shows our nation's comprehensive strength and great achievements throughout 30 years of opening up. It is an image of China belonging to the world and reflects China's resolve to take a path of peaceful development.
Not long ago, <The New York Times> published Nicolai Ouroussoff's article In Changing Face of Beijing, a Look at the New China. The article says that China is expressing an emerging national identity and making efforts to embrace the world. At Friday's opening ceremony, the world once again felt the overwhelming passion and power of China embracing the world.
People of China clearly know what this embrace means to the nation and to the world. For ordinary Chinese people, this embrace means responsibility and commitment. The Beijing Olympic Games is their sincere and selfless dedication to the world. They have lived with many inconveniences and conquered many difficulties silently. They are heroes of this Olympic Games too, just as the competing athletes are.
It is the people who create history. It is because we have such great people that we had Friday's splendor and have today's China. The success of the Olympic Games depends on them. When a great nation confidently walks towards tomorrow, it also brings a better tomorrow to the world. China will embrace the world with an open heart, confidence and passion; and the new China will make its contributions to world harmony.
At that moment, when the huge dove of peace was formed by the performers, when the 2,800 children's smiles blossomed in the stadium and when the melody of "You and Me" was flying in the night, "The beautiful Olympics" show presented the character "和" to the world. This character embodies the core concept and fundamental spirit of traditional Chinese culture and embodies the Chinese people's longing for peaceful development. This character "和" expresses the eternal aspiration of the Olympic Games and the ideal everyone in this global village has for the future.
The flame representing the Olympic spirit is now lit. Chinese people will share the joy of success and the happy and festive occasion with people all around the world.
By People's Daily Online
