BEIJING, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) -- China harvested 32 golds in 2004 Olympic Games, making it a sports power second only to the U.S. Beijing, capital of China, is hosting the 2008 Olympic Games opening Friday.

    Here are basic facts and figures about Chinese sports:

    FIRST WORLD CHAMPION: Rong Guotuan, a table tennis player, in March, 1959.

    WORLD RECORDS: 1182

    WORLD CHAMPIONS: 2165

    ATHENS OLYMPIC GAMES: China reaped 32 golds, 17 silvers and 14 bronzes.

    TOTAL OF OLYMPIC MEDALS: From 1979 to 2004, China won 112 golds, 96 silvers and 78 bronzes in Summer Olympics, and 4 golds, 16 silvers and 13 bronzes in Winter Olympics.

    PEOPLE PRACTICING SPORTS FREQUENTLY: 518 million, aged from 7 to 70, with 430,000 sports tutors.

    STADIUMS: 850,000 gymnasiums and stadiums

    POPULAR MODERN SPORTS: Badminton, table tennis, artistic gymnastics , diving, shooting and volleyball, among others.

    NATIONAL GAMES: Bejing hosted the 1st National Games in 1959. The games have been held every four years since 1975. The 10th National Games were held in 2005.

    NATIONAL GAMES FOR THE DISABLED: First Games were held in Hefei, capital of Central Anhui Province in 1984. The 7th games were concluded in 2007 in Kunming, capital of Southwest Yunnan Province.

    MAJOR TRADITIONAL SPORTS:

    --QIGONG: It is a unique Chinese way of keeping fit. It aims at enhancing health, prolonging life, curing illness and improving physiological functions by concentrating the mind and regulating the breath.

    --GO: Go, known as weiqi in China,is a strategic board game. It has been played for at least two thousand years.

    --XIANGQI: This popular board game also finds its roots in China. The earliest literary reference comes from the 9th century.

    --SHADOWBOXING: Known as Taiji in China, the exercise is used in the training for combat sports, and especially, as its name implies, in boxing. It can prepare the muscles before one engages in intense physical activities. It requires graceful body movements.