2008 Summer Olympics Games , Beijing, China
Pics: Mariel Zagunis-USA 2008 Olympic gold medalist at Womens Saber!The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, were a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008.[a] A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) competed in 302 events in 28 sports, one event more than was on the schedule of the 2004 Games. Three nations participated in the Olympics for the first time. China became the 22nd nation to host the Olympic Games and the 18th to hold a Summer Olympic Games. It was the third time that the Summer Olympic Games were held in Asia, after Tokyo, Japan in 1964 and Seoul, South Korea in 1988. These Games were the third time that Olympic events have been held in the territories of two different NOCs, as the equestrian events were held in Hong Kong.