August 8, 2008 (Beijing, China) – Opening day in Beijing saw lots of excitement in the air, along with less palatable coal particles, as the city readied for the opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games which they had successfully bid on seven years earlier. The Chinese are known internationally as a people whose work ethic is monstrous, yet they all agreed to end the work day on Friday, Aug. 8 at noon, as ordered by the government, so the party could begin.

It appears that these Games are extraordinarily important to every one of the hundreds of thousands of people who use the spanking new subway system each day. There is a feeling of pride, of great satisfaction in the crowds on every subway car, sidewalk and café. People are polite, smile, nod, greet visitors with open arms, and be as helpful as they can be considering it is a rare visitor who has managed to learn more than a smattering of Mandarin or Catonese. And if you can’t find one of the young, bright volunteers to help you out, several others are ready to show you where you need to stand for a taxi or bus. Sign language goes a long way. The world has finally come to see China shine.

But while the citizens of the People’s Republic of China may have done all the work to get the city to shine, they had no decision-making on how the Games would impact the average person. Migrant workers were brought in to provide labour that is cheap even by Chinese standards. They lived in makeshift homes that at best look like canvas hovels and were fit into extra spaces such as parking lots and fields. For the past three weeks they have apparently not been paid, but have been told to pack up and go back to where they came from. In addition, poor but long standing traditional neighbourhoods were razed to the ground to make way for high rises. One is left wondering where all of these homeless people have gone as the streets have been swept clean while columns of military police stand at white-gloved attention alongside the main venues in an area called the Olympic Green, their olive green uniforms looking like starched shrubbery.

There is a grandness to the Olympic Green, but with a grey smog enveloping everything, it seems anything but as throats get sore, eyes run, and many who are attending the Games are concerned about what is happening to their lungs. Add to this some very hot and humid weather.

The Beijing Games have surpassed all others with their sheer massiveness as the streets surrounding the Green seem to run eight lanes wide and lead to massive monuments to the Games. Hours before the Opening Ceremonies commenced, the Olympic Subway Line was shut down for security reasons. Taxis were in very short supply and walking to the next closest open subway line was the only alternative.

While nineteenth century technology is providing the energy to fuel China’s technological leap into the twenty-first century, the reliable bicycle is rapidly being replaced by the automobile, and air quality is suffering – BBC reported this morning it’s beyond the limits of the World Health Organization.

Men’s Road Race
The road course commences near historic Tiananmen Square at Yongdinmen on Saturday, August 9. The race appears to have two start areas as the official map also marks the finish line as the start line, located at the Badaling area near the Great Wall. Two years earlier the organizing committee sent out maps that showed the road course designated near the mountain bike and BMX site, many kilometers away in a different part of the city. Course designers must have wanted to match the historic significance of the Athen’s Games as that circuit took in the Parthenon and the Acropolis.

As riders travel the relatively flat 78.8km road that will bring them to the Great Wall, they also pass the Temple of Heaven and the Great Hall of the People. The buildings and sites in Beijing are stunning as the architecture reflects various regimes. Ancient statues are on display, making routes that haven’t been completely remade, feel like a museum.

But riders won’t be wondering about the past as they first do the flat ride, and then seven laps of the 23.8km Great Wall circuit. With the combination of a 338 metre climb, heat, humidity and air that looks like a fine grey snow is falling, this race is anybody’s call.

Canada has qualified three riders – veteran Michael Barry, first time Olympian Svein Tuft, and former world champion mountain biker now top road cyclist, Ryder Hesjedal. They are up against Spain, Germany, Australia, France, Italy, Russia, Belgium, the Netherlands and the U.S. who have all qualified five riders, as well as many other countries that qualified between one to four cyclists. China qualified one.

It’s game on this Saturday as the race commences at 11:00 am Beijing time, 11:00 pm EST.