by Xinhua writer Zhou Yan and Zhang Zeyuan
BEIJING, Aug. 12 (Xinhua) -- When the 600-strong
athletes of the Olympic host China are fighting hard to nab more gold medals to
honor their nation, the several million home spectators are also trying their
best to grab another title: the most amicable and well-behaved spectators for
Olympians from all over the world.
The enthusiasm of the Chinese spectators, who have
tried hard to get a ticket -- any ticket -- to experience the Olymics at their
doorsteps, goes not just to superstars like Michael Phelps and Yao Ming, but
also to those who lost but demonstrated an undying determination.
A posting entitled "A heartbreaking scene at the
Beijing Games: Colombian weightlifter's tears" appeared on the homepage of
China's leading portal website sina.com.cn on Tuesday and stirred many Chinese
heartstrings.
The account, posted by a spectator after men's 62kg
class finals on Monday, told how the Chinese audience had supported Colombian
weightlifter Oscar Figueroa, who failed to lift the barbell after several
attempts.
"The grief and helplessness in his eyes became
apparent after several failed attempts. Everyone shouted 'go, go' and prayed for
a miracle," read the posting, from a netizen who named himself "Si Ren."
While Figueroa broke into tears after one last futile
attempt, the entire audience felt his grief. "Everyone was heartbroken until his
teammate Diego Salazar won a silver."
The account, posted at 2:30 am on Tuesday, received
nearly 160,000 clicks, and more than 570 netizens left comments, hoping to give
Figueroa a pat on the shoulder.
"I guess he was too nervous. I hope he would start
all over again for the next Games," wrote one netizen named "yp_xiaobao," who
said she was having her dinner but became too sad to eat after reading the
story.
Four days after China welcomed in global athletes
with a grand opening ceremony for the Beijing Olympics, the Chinese have shared
their laughters and tears by watching the Olympians play, either on field or on
TV.
Emotional Chinese fans, who made up at least 80
percent of the audience in the National Aquatics Center, or the Water Cube,
joined the flag-waving Americans to roar "USA" when the United States won three
out of all four golds up for grabs in the swimming finals on Tuesday
morning.
Despite the host country's weak presence at these
events, the Chinese spectators cheerfully applauded and shared the glory of
Michael Phelps, Natalie Coughlin and Aaron Peirsol.
The only Chinese swimmer to enter Tuesday's finals,
Sun Ye, finished seventh in women's 100m breaststroke, with the gold going to
Australian Leisel Jones.
Whether or not the Chinese athletes are competing,
fans of the host country have transcended their national sentiments to take
delight in others' victories, by shouting "go, go" and applauding with their
cheerleaders to pep up international players.
"We really felt the spirit of the crowd," said U.S.
coach Kevin Mazeika after his gymnastics team took a bronze in the men's final
at the National Indoor Stadium on Tuesday. The Chinese spectators did not forget
to applaud the U.S. gymnasts while celebrating their own gold.
Beijing worker Duan Kexin changed shifts with a
colleague and got up at 6 a.m. to watch a men's volleyball match between the
United States and Italy on Tuesday.
"I'm pretty neutral and cheered both sides," said
Duan, 56. "But when we saw the Italians were about to lose, we all shouted 'go,
go Italy' -- people tend to sympathize with the disadvantaged, you know."
Duan is among millions of Chinese volleyballs fans
who still take pride in China's Olympic women's volleyball gold in 1984. "We
huddled in front of the only black-and-white TV in our neighborhood to watch
them play," recalled Duan.
Lang Ping, the beloved hero who once helped China
capture the Olympic gold, is now coaching the U.S. team. But domestic fans' love
for her has gone beyond the Chinese border to greet the American players.
"Many thanks to the audience. It was a pity that I
couldn't step up on the court and play for them," Lang said on Monday, after her
team lost 0-3 to Cuba.
Before the Beijing Games opened on Friday night,
Olympics organizers had worried that some Chinese fans might not know when to
cheer, or might even boo athletes from some countries and regions that they
don't like.
Three weeks before the Olympics opening, Beijing
Games organizers published a set of dos and don'ts for the Olympic spectators,
who are told to avoid taking drums, whistles, umbrella or walkie-talkie into the
competition venues, or blocking others' sight by standing for too long in the
stands.
Beijing has also mobilized large crowds of
volunteers, mostly college students and office workers, as cheerleaders to pep
up athletes and activate the probably silent audience.
Meanwhile, the clean-up of uncouth behaviors such as
booing and use of dirty words by the audience, as well as spitting and
littering, started years before the Games are really here.
"I think the spectators were quite polite, with no
one swearing or booing," said Du Huajie, a Beijinger who also watched Tuesday's
volleyball game between Italy and the United States.
As the competition heated up, Du said the crowd
became wild and applauses seemed to be loud enough to have the ceiling of the
20,000-seat Capital Gymnasium lifted. "It's incredible to see my father, a
serious-looking professor, yelling and waving his arms with the fans. So it's
the Games that matter, not just the medals."
When China's gold hopeful, Athens Games defending
champion Zhu Qinan wept on the podium after a narrow defeat by India's Abhinav
Bindra in men's 10m air rifle on Monday, his fans left him messages on the
Internet, calling him a hero.
In 1988, when China's gymnastic legend Li Ning -- who
lit the cauldron of the Beijing Games last Friday -- returned home from Seoul
with empty hands, he received piles of letters from his fans, all blaming him
for failing to win a medal for his country.
(Xinhua correspondents Yi Ling and Lou Chen
contributed to this story)
