Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
BEIJING 2008: THE LEGACY
In a nation so obsessed with the number eight that SIM cards or apartments bearing that
number cost more, it was unimaginable that the Chinese would not be selected to host the
Olympics
in 2008. And so it was that the city duly won the vote in 2001, and prepared for
the Games to end all Games - some put the final cost at over US$40 billion, making it by
far the most expensive sporting event in history. The Games were an extraordinary success,
from the utterly compelling opening ceremony to the results of the home nation, who won
51 gold medals - far ahead of the USA in second place.
The legacy of the Games has, however, been more mixed. Increased participation across
a wide range of sports has been the most positive aspect of the Games' legacy (though Ch-
ina still fell behind the USA again in the medals table at London 2012). And there were
substantial improvements to infrastructure and public transport, though these would have
happened anyway, and were merely accelerated by the event. In fact, the effect on the local
economy was, in the end, minimal, with increased takings from international tourists offset
by losses from enforced factory closures in the Beijing area.
The biggest losers, however, have been the wonderful Olympic
venues
, which were built
with no real future plan in mind. The main stadium has seen little use since the Olympics,
hosting a couple of concerts and football games, and a short-lived theme park; the Water
Cube continues to haemorrhage money, despite the new income stream from its new on-
site
water park
; and other venues have fared even worse. Ironically, in seeking to show
Chinese might to the world, the ongoing cost of the Olympics has angered a fair chunk of
Beijing's population - lessons to be taken on board in advance of China's inevitable bid for
a forthcoming edition of football's World Cup.
National Stadium
奥林匹体育馆
, àolínpǐkè tǐyùguǎn • Daily 8am-5pm •
￥
50
Centrepiece of the Olympic Park is the 90,000-seat National Stadium, nicknamed the “
Bird's
Nest
” on account of its exterior steel lattice. It was built at a cost of over US$400m by Herzog
& de Meuron, with input from Ai Weiwei, China's greatest living self-publicist. The stadium
made a grand stage for many memorable events, including the spectacular opening display,
but since the Olympics hasn't seen much use and is eventually expected to become part of
a larger shopping and event complex. A few hundred people visit every day, mostly out-of-
towners; you can join them in wandering round the empty shell for an extortionate entry fee.
For
￥
120 you can even mount the winner's podium and be handed a fake medal.
National Aquatics Center
国家游泳中心
, guójiā yóuyǒng zhōngxīn •
