After its slow start in joining the Olympic family, China has made remarkable progress.

In 1894, when preparation for the first modern Olympic Games was initiated, the International Olympic Committee sent China an invitation to participate in what was later to become the world's greatest sporting event. At the time, the ruling Qing court knew nothing about the Olympiad and declined to respond.

After the All-China Sports Federation was established in 1924, the country joined eight international sports federations, namely track and field, swimming, gymnastics, tennis, weightlifting, boxing, football and basketball. Three Chinese athletes participated in the Eighth Olympic Games.

In 1931, the International Olympic Committee recognized the then All-China Sports Federation as the Chinese Olympic Committee. This marked China's formal entry into the Olympic family.

Thus far, 24 summer Olympic Games have been held. For various reasons, China only participated in the ninth, 10th, 11th, 14th, 15th and 23rd-27th games.

However, during the time when the Chinese Olympic Committee was forced to suspend contact with the International Olympic Committee, Chinese athletes did not give up and continued striving to improve their skills in line with the aims and spirit of the Olympic Games.

On November 26, 1979, the International Olympic Committee resumed the lawful rights of China's Olympic Committee and decided to allow Taiwan to take part in the games under the name of "China's Taipei Olympic Committee." China once again returned to the Olympic fold.

In February 1980, China took part in the winter Olympic Games for the first time, and in July 1984, it participated in the 23rd summer Olympic Games, returning to the biggest international sports stage after an absence of 32 years. During the latter Games, 225 Chinese athletes and 50 Chinese coaches took part in 16 events, including basketball, volleyball, women's handball, track and field, gymnastics and swimming.

July 29 was a special day for China and for those concerned with Olympic Games. Xu Haifeng, dubbed "magic shooting hand," won the Games' first gold medal with 566 rings, breaking the "zero gold" in China's Olympic history. Juan Antonio Samaranch, then IOC president, presented the gold medal to the champion, saying that it was "a big day in China's 5,000-year history."

After that, several Chinese weightlifters won gold medals along with two further golds in shooting events. Wu Xiaoxuan became the first female Olympic champion in China's history, breaking the Olympic record of women's small standard pistol in three shooting positions. In addition, Luan Jujie became the first Asian women's foil champion, breaking the monopoly of Olympic fencing champion by Europeans. Li Ning, known as "Prince of Gymnastics," won three gold medals in the floor exercise, vault and rings, becoming the athlete with the most medals—three gold, two silver and one bronze—at the 23rd Olympic Games. China's women volleyball team defeated the U.S. team, the host country, achieving their goal of three consecutive championships in big international competitions.

The Chinese team won 15 gold, eight silver and nine bronze medals in the sports spectacle participated in by more than 140 countries, ranking fourth in terms of gold medals after the United States, Romania, and West Germany.

In 1988, China sent a 445-strong team to the 24th Olympic Games held in Seoul, the Republic of Korea, including 300 athletes taking part in 21 events. Meanwhile, 30 Chinese representatives held the post of judges and technical representatives. China's Taipei delegation, composed of 140 members, also took part in the games. Its 90 athletes participated in a total of 15 events.

In Seoul, China only won five gold medals, but broke three Olympic records. The 17-year-old diver Xu Yanmei won the first gold medal for China, while 16-year-old Zhuang Yong swam to victory in the 100-m freestyle, becoming China's first swimmer to take gold. Chinese women rowers, headed by Zhang Xianghua and Li Ronghua sprang a surprise by taking a silver and a bronze in the coxed fours and coxed eights respectively. Woman shot-putter Li Meisu pushed her way to a bronze, the only track and field medal for Asia, while China's table tennis team bagged two gold medals.

The 25th Olympic Games was held in Barcelona, Spain, in July 1992. On the first day of the competition young Chinese athletes won one gold and three silver medals.

At these games, the Chinese team, composed of 128 sportsmen and 133 sportswomen, placed fourth among 170 teams in the medal standings with 16 golds, 22 silvers and 16 bronzes.

China's swimming team won a total of four golds and five silvers, ranking fourth behind the United States, the Commonwealth of Independent States and Hungry. Chen Yanling stepped her way into history in the women's 10-km walk, becoming the first track and field champion in China's Olympic history. Sun Shuwei dazzled the judges in the men's 10-m platform dive, with six of the seven judges awarding him perfect 10 scores.

The year 1996 witnessed the centennial Olympic Games held in Atlanta, U.S.A. After 16 days of competitions at the 26th Olympic Games, the Chinese team's medal haul amounted to 16 golds, 22 silvers and 12 bronzes, ranking fourth both in gold medals tally and in the total number of medals won. In addition, two Chinese athletes broke the world record four times in four events, while three others broke the Olympic record six times in six events.

On September 15, 2000, over 11,000 athletes from 200 countries took part in the 27th Olympic Games—the last Olympic Games in the 20th century—held in Sydney, Australia.

A change was made to the competitive structure of these Olympics. Besides teams from the United States and Russia, remaining in the First Group, China ranked third, both in the total of its gold medal tally and in the overall medal achievement. China was awarded 28 gold, 16 silver and 15 bronze medals, a historical breakthrough. Three Chinese athletes set eight world records, 12 times, and a further six athletes set 11 Olympic records, underlining the great improvement for China over the four previous Olympic Games, and outstripping the total number of both gold medals and other medals won in all the past Olympics.

By the end of 2000, Chinese athletes had collected a grand total of 80 golds, 89 silvers (including 10 in winter Olympic Games) and 68 bronzes (including four in winter Olympic Games) at the Olympic Games.

(Beijing Review, July 30, 2004)