Beijing 2008 Olympic games begun at 8:00pm August 8th. Chinese President Hu Jintao declared open the 29th summer Olympic Games of Beijing in the National Stadium in north Beijing on the night.

The Opening Ceremony began with the last minute countdown, a roar of thunder came from the floor of the National Stadium where 2,008 drummers beat line after line of fou, an ancient Chinese percussion instrument. The drummers chanted as they struck the fou, "Friends have come from afar, how happy we are." This phrase comes from the work of Confucius, one of China's most important educators and thinkers.