A memorable spectacle indeed!

As deafening fireworks marked the end of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, it also brought to a close a fortnight of sporting excellence that showcased the might of modern day China.
At the end of the 16 days of competition and 302 events, China sit atop the pile of 203 nations with 51 gold medals, 15 more than the United States on 36, with Russia winning 23 and Great Britain 19.
Throughout the fortnight and some event, there have been stories of success, failure and bravado, keeping in tune with the true spirit of the Olympics.
Michael Phelps proved he's the fastest man in water, Usain Bolt the fastest on land and Tyson Gay maybe the fastest to fail to run in a final.
Natalie du Toit proved that handicap was not an issue while Stephanie Rice showed that beauty was not a hindrance.
There were other stories too, and we, The Daily Star Sport, have brought to your attention the showpiece events and the people who dominated them.
The Olympics are about expectations realized, unrealized and exceeded.
Beijing 2008 was all of that and more.
Nothing could stop her
South African swimmer Natalie du Toit didn't win a medal in the women's open water 10km race at Shunyi. She didn't need to. The 24-year-old's journey to the start line in Beijing has been an achievement worthy of any Olympic medal. Du Toit on August 20 made history as the first amputee to compete at the Olympic Games, finishing 16th in a field of 25. Du Toit lost her left leg in a motorcycle accident in 2001, a year after narrowly failing to qualify for the Sydney Games. Her leg was amputated at the knee after it began to turn gangrenous. She was back in the water three months later and the 10km race was the culmination of her life-long dream to compete at the Olympics. Such was the immense interest in du Toit's story, she was mobbed by reporters from all around the world after the race. The five-time Athens Paralympic champion, who gives motivational speeches for a living, admitted she was overcome by emotion before the race and was almost choking up as she later spoke about her journey. "For me to come to the Olympics Games has been a dream come true," du Toit said. "To be here, it's been a long road. I have worked hard to get here. I deserve to be here on merit. I don't want to get anything free." Du Toit, who wears a prosthetic leg out of the water, was prompted to give open water swimming a try last year because there is less emphasis on the start and no tumble turns to worry about. She qualified for Beijing after finishing fourth at the 10km world open water championships in Seville in May.
Team China
China completed the Long March to world sporting supremacy on home territory and the toppling of the United States never looked in doubt from the moment that weightlifter Chen Xiexia opened her country's account with the second gold medal of the Olympics. By the end of the Games, China had made off with 51 golds, well ahead of the Americans. The United States remained ahead in total number of medals won though. China's successes came mainly in lower profile sports such as diving, shooting and table-tennis while success in sports like athetics and swimming remained elusive with just Liu Zige's women's 200m butterfly gold to celebrate for the hosts. The story of the 19 year old Zige was one to behold. A relative unknown before the Games began, she shaved nearly 1.9 seconds of the previous mark to finish in World Record time well ahead of Australian favourite in the Games, Jessica Schipper. But with the top gold medal tally in the bag, how well the Chinese defend their crown in London in four years time will be fascinating to watch.
Michael Phelps
Came to Beijing with the anticipation that he would take anything that would come his way. The American entered the fray with his name enrolled in a record eight events -- 100m butterfly, 200m butterfly, 200m freestyle, 200m individual medley, 400m individual medley, 4x100m freestyle relay, 4x200m freestyle relay and 4x100m medley relay. Believe it or not, Phelps, whose nickname is 'MP', won all the eight golds, seven of those coming in world record timing. Nevertheless, the event, the 100m butterfly, that denied him a golden slam at the Water Cube came in nothing less than an Olympic record. His Beijing medals added to the six golds that he won four years ago at Athens -- the 400m individual medley, 100m butterfly, 200m butterfly, 200m individual medley, 4x200m freestyle relay and 4x100m medley relay -- making him the greatest Olympian of all time with 14 gold medals. He has two bronze medals also to his name at the Athens Games.
Stephanie Rice
The Australian sweetheart arrived in Beijing after ending her two-year relationship with fellow Aussie swimmer and 50m freestyle world record holder Eamon Sullivan just in July. The couple lived in separate states of Australia, (Sullivan in Western Australia and Rice in Queensland) and said the stress of living so far apart and of course the impending Olympics caused the split of Australia's 'Glamour Couple'.
But the split only appeared to be the springboard for Rice as she slashed 1.67 seconds off American Katie Hoff's world mark in stopping the clock at 4 minutes 29.45 seconds for the 400m individual medley to win her country's first gold medal at the Beijing Olympics on August 10. And then three days later, the unlucky 13 brought good luck for Rice when she grabbed the 200m individual medley to become Australia's first dual gold medalist of the Games, that too coming with a world record time.
Elena Isinbaeva
Diva is a word that is overused in the sporting world, but if there is any athlete who merits the description it is Russia's peerless pole vaulter Elena Isinbaeva. The former gymnast and Red Army lieutenant pocketed her second straight Olympics gold with consummate ease, clearing 25cm higher than her nearest rival, and then produced a one-woman show of the highest quality and drama. She failed twice in her bid at a new world record height of 5.05m, but on her third attempt she sailed over triggering one of the most gleeful gold medal celebrations of the Games. She insists she will be back in four years time in London to bid for the treble.
Usain Bolt
If the National Stadium in Beijing is the Nest, Usain Bolt is surely the Bird. These Beijing Games gave the Jamaican speed-king all he could want. He ran thrice, he won thrice, and he broke the world record thrice too.
He became the quickest man on earth by sprinting to 100m gold on the 16th of August with a timing of 9.69 seconds. Four days later it was again Bolt, this time he took only 19.30 seconds to clinch the 200m gold. He did not have to wait too long for his hattrick as on the 22nd he, along with mates Nesta Carter, Michael Frater and Asafa Powell, won the 4x100m relay in 37.10 seconds.
The unique feats made him the first man to win all three events at a single Olympics since Carl Lewis in 1984, and the first man in history to set world records in all three at a single Olympics. His name and achievements in sprinting have earned him the nickname 'Lightning Bolt'.
Rebecca Romero
English sportswoman Rebecca Romero, whose slogan is "…live your dream", came to the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games with a unique goal on her mind. Winning the silver in rowing in Athens in 2004 was not enough for the 28-year-old, who switched to cycling just two years ago to pursue her dream of Olympic gold. Through grit and determination, she accomplished this in spectacular fashion in the Laoshan Velodrome in Beijing on August 17. The only other woman to win medals at two different Summer Games was German Roswitha Krause who claimed silver in the swimming in 1968 and handball in 1976.
Kosuke Kitajima
Otherwise known as the breaststroke king, Japan's Kosuke Kitajima won both the 100m (on August 11 with a world record time) and 200m breaststroke (on August 14) events in the Beijing 2008 Olympics Games. This was preceded by his efforts in the 2004 Athens Games where he also won both the events in question.
Kitajima, who is also the Tokyo 2016 Athlete Ambassador, won his third medal on August 17 in the men's 4x100m medley relay of the Games, when his team ranked third.
Guo Jingjin
Guo Jingjing is a diver from China and is considered to be the most successful woman diver in Olympic history. Guo is the princess of diving, just like Maria Sharapova to tennis.
Guo won the gold medal in the women's 3-metre springboard, with a total of 415.35 points.
In synchronised diving, the defending champions Guo, and Wu Minxia, who won the event in the 2004 Athens Olympics and three World Championships, had the lead the entire competition in Beijing, winning the gold medal.