The footprints in their history stretch back 5000 years, but for the world's greatest wall builders, makers of a forbidden city, what happens tonight is not merely a small step, but a great leap. China is welcoming the world. Who will they be when this is over? The clock of their lives has been beating with a screaming urgency. They have pushed themselves to be as sharp as a razor's edge, for this summer, to be here, now, and nowhere else. Beijing, the first ever Olympics for the world's most populous nation, 1.3 billion who framed the front-page story of the 21st century, a China both outside time and bursting every which way in a bewildering rush of transformation. They have made themselves anew, relentlessly, devotedly, so they might, on these days (if you want) step into history. They've submitted to an uncompromising search for mastery, repetitive motion, technique polished toward an impossible(guys) ideal. fall fail get up. It's not the triumph,but the struggle. It's not the triumph,but the struggle. It's not the triumph, but the struggle. Not the triumph,but the struggle. Why did they begin? Why do they endure? 郭晶晶(中国女子跳水)： 08 的年奥运会在北京，在自己家门口.所以就会一直，一直继续坚持 鲍威尔(美国男子100 米短跑)： I compete, because I want to run faster than any man has ever run. 肖恩·约翰逊(美国女子体操)：Flopping on a 4-inch beam, I like the daredevil proud of it. 沃尔什/梅伊(美国女子沙滩排球)： (You) know, to get the chance to try to defend your gold medal, I couldn't write a better story. 刘翔：中国男子运动员第一个拿到金牌，所以说我也才会被大家记住。 It is time for the colorful clash of a universe of shimmering, still to be written biographies. It is time to chase eternal youth. T...
