Huanhuan's Sports

In the intimate circle of Fuwa, Huanhuan is the big brother. He is a child of fire, symbolizing the Olympic Flame and the passion of sport. Huanhuan stands in the center of Fuwa as the core embodiment of the Olympic spirit. And while he inspires all with the passion to run faster, jump higher and be stronger, he is also open and inviting. The fiery designs of his head ornament are drawn from the famed Dunhuang murals -- with just a touch of China's traditional lucky designs. Huanhuan is outgoing and enthusiastic. He excels at all the ball games and represents the red Olympic ring.

Basketball, Handball, Football, Taekwondo, BMX cycling, Equestrian, Modern pentathlon and Triathlon.

Basketball has been played consistently at the Summer Olympic Games since 1936, with demonstration events in 1904 and 1924. Primarily developed in the United States, basketball had spread internationally by the 1930s. The United States have won all the gold medals in the men's competition from 1936-2000, with the exception of 1972, 1988 (Soviet Union) ,1980. Today, basketball has become one of the most popular sports in the world.

The basketball event of the 29th Olympic Games will be held at Wukesong Indoor Stadium in Beijing from August 9-24, 2008.

Handball was introduced as an Olympic sport for men at the 1936 Summer Olympics, in Berlin, but dropped after that, only to be resumed at the 1972 Summer Olympics, again in the Munich 1972 Olympic Games. Women's handball competition was introduced at the 1976 Summer Olympic Games. Women's handball was introduced at the following Olympic Games in Montreal, 1976. The USSR won the gold medals in both the 11-team men's and 6-team women's competition.

The handball event of the 29th Olympic Games will be held in Beijing from August 9-24, 2008. The preliminary competitions will be held at Olympic Sports Center Gymnasium and the finals will be held at the National Indoor Stadium.

In 1900 and 1904, football was introduced as an exhibition sport and became the first team sport included in the Olympic Games. Since 1908, the sport has been held at every Olympic Games with the exception of 1932 in Los Angeles.

The football competitions of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games will be held from August 6-23, 2008 in five cities, namely Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Shenyang and Qinhuangdao. The finals for men and women will be held in Beijing where three venues are located: the Workers' Stadium, the Olympic Sports Center Stadium and the National Stadium. The venues outside Beijing are: Shanghai Stadium, Tianjin Olympic Center Stadium, Shenyang Olympic Sport Center Stadium, and Qinhuangdao Olympic Sports Center Stadium.

Taekwondo was featured on the programme of the 1988 and 1992 Olympics as a demonstration sport. At the 103rd IOC Session, held in Paris in 1994, taekwondo became an official medal sport beginning with the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. During those Games, 103 athletes - 55 men and 48 women - from 51 countries took part in the taekwondo competition.

Taekwondo is a traditional Korean martial art, which means "the way of kicking and striking." In taekwondo, the hands and feet are used to overcome an opponent, but the trademark of the sport is its combination of kick movements. Its origins are not well known but three possibilities are often described.

The taekwondo event of the 29th Olympic Games will be held at University of Science and Technology Beijing Gymnasium from August 20-23, 2008.

Equestrian made its Summer Olympics debut at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris,France. The current Olympic equestrian adisciplines are Dressage,Eventing, and Jumping. In each discipline, both individual and team medals are awarded.

Until the 1952 Summer Olympics, only male cavalry officers were permitted to compete in any Olympic equestrian discipline.In team competition, teams may have any blend of male and female competitors, and are not required to have minimum numbers of either gender; countries are free to choose the best riders, irrespective of gender.

Equestrian disciplines and the equestrian component of Modern Pentathlon are also the only Olympic events that involve animals. The horse is considered as much an athlete as the human rider.

The equestrian events of the 29th Olympic Games will be held in Hong Kong, China from August 9-21. The jumping and dressage events will be held at the main venue in Shatin and the cross country competition will be held at Beas River.

Modern pentathlon is a sports contest created especially for the Summer Olympic Games by the founder of the modern Games, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, and was first contested in 1912. It comprised the contemporary sports of pistol shooting, fencing, swimming, horse riding and running, and embraced the spirit of its ancient counterpart.

The Modern pentathlon events of the 2008 Olympic Games will be held in Fencing Hall, Ying Tung Natatorium and Olympic Sports Center Stadium.

Triathlonconsists of three sports-- swimming, biking, and running.  There are several race distances:

Triathlon history dates back to the early 1970s and originated with the San Diego Track Club. In 1989, the sport was awarded Olympic status and featured for the first time at the 2000 Sydney Olympics in Australia. Since then, the sport has grown in popularity. In fact, no other sport achieved Olympic status in such a short time.

on 29 June 2003, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided to include BMX in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China.BMX (Bicycle moto cross) started in the late 1960s in California, around the time that motocross became a popular sport in the USA.

The BMX event of the 29th Olympic Games will be held at the Laoshan Bicycle Moto Cross (BMX) Venue from August 20-21,2008.