One World, One Dream

The Beijing Olympic Games that began yesterday with an astounding display of Chinese cultural events in one of the most architecturally stunning stadiums of the world will be followed by billions of viewers across the planet.

Sri Lanka is no exception, as practically the whole nation would be glued to television sets following the exploits of our Olympic Squad.

This is a moment of pride not only for China but also for Asia itself, as the Olympics comes to Asia rarely. It is also no secret that certain international forces did not like the idea of China, an emerging economic powerhouse, hosting the 29th edition of the Summer Olympics.

They directly and indirectly strove to sabotage the Games on numerous occasions. We laud the Chinese Government and the people for their resilience and courage in thwarting such insidious attempts.

Yet, the world is with China at this historic moment. Nearly 80 world leaders including President Mahinda Rajapaksa watched the opening ceremony at the Bird’s Nest yesterday, in a sign of solidarity with the Chinese people.

The Olympics is all about solidarity and friendship. It is practically the only sporting event that brings all the nations in the world together under ‘one roof’. Five rings, five continents, one people.

Faster, higher, stronger. These Olympic mottos, as well as the Beijing Olympics theme of One World, One Dream remind us that the Olympic Games bring the world together.

Competition will be intense at the Games, but what matters in the end is not victory. As the saying goes, what matters is how you play the game. Sportsmanship is the very essence of the Olympics Games, which had evolved from rudimentary beginning in ancient Greece to today’s modern spectacle.

It is also one of the very few sporting events still not completely taken over by commercial interests, where pure sporting passion is still predominant.

This year’s Olympics will be one of the most high-tech sporting events in recent times, with China making every effort to showcase its economic and technological prowess.

From a high-definition satellite feed to state-of-the-art stadia to top-notch security, Beijing has sought to stage one of the most successful editions of the Summer Olympics. The organisers are also taking all precautions to ensure a drug-free Games.

Beijing has also made impressive gains in reducing vehicular traffic and pollution. In fact, one of the key concepts of the Beijing Olympics is ‘Green Olympics’ whereby all facilities have been designed to harness alternative sources of energy and reduce the Carbon footprint.

It goes without saying that once the Olympics end, these transport and sports facilities including the Olympics Village will continue to serve the citizens of Beijing even more efficiently.

The Olympics Games evolve over the years. This year, there will be 28 summer sports including lesser known ones such as handball, sailing and taekwondo. It is impossible to follow all these sports, but the focus will be mainly on track and field athletics and swimming, the ‘bread and butter’ of the Olympics.

There is an interesting - and intriguing - suggestion by many influential sporting personalities in Asia for the inclusion of cricket in the Olympics at least by 2020.

The significance of this year would not be lost on any cricket fan - Twenty20, the ultra-short version of the game will ideally fit the time slots already familiar to Olympics viewers. It will be a dream combination - the most exciting sporting spectacle on Earth and the most popular sport of more than two billion people.

With teams such as China and USA coming up in the ICC associate/affiliate rankings, Twenty20 cricket at the Olympics would be just the ticket for a new dimension to the Games.

We hope the Sri Lankan athletes now in Beijing will do their best to bring glory and fame to their Motherland by winning their respective events. They should keep the Lion Flag flying high at the Games.

They must remember that they will be competing with the best of the best in the world. All eyes in Lanka will be on them as they battle for Olympic supremacy.