Beijing Gets 2008 Olympics

July 13 -- Beijing bested Paris, Toronto, Istanbul and Osaka today, winning the International Olympic Committee's vote to host the 2008 Olympics.

International Olympic Committee President Juan Antonio Samaranch made the announcement in front of the five assembled bid committees in Moscow.

"I want to express the gratitude of the International Olympic Committee to all five candidate cities for their excellent work," he said, and then continued into the words everyone had gathered to hear:

"The games of the 29th Olympiad in 2008 are awarded to the city of Beijing."

Immediately afterward, Beijing's red sports-jacketed bid committee burst into a shout of joy, bouncing up and down with their arms around each other.

In Beijing, firecrackers peppered the skies and crowds cheered, signaling the beginning of a party that would last into the night — and the beginning of preparations that will extend over the next seven years.

Chinese President Jiang Zemin greeted the masses by shouting "Comrades. We express our deep thanks to all our friends around the world and to the IOC for helping to make Beijing successful in its Olympic bid."

The he showed a rare moment of spontaneity — diving into the throngs of jubilant partygoers and shaking hands with them.

Amid the uproar of Samaranch's announcement came detail of the vote totals. Beijing won on the second round of the secret ballot, receiving 56 votes, he said — more than twice that of the second-place finisher, Toronto, which won 22 votes.

Paris received 18 votes and Istanbul, Turkey, received nine. The Japanese city of Osaka was eliminated in the first round of voting.

Not an Absolute Favorite

China, with its 1.3 billion citizens, offers a huge local audience for the Games, and the

biggest consumer market in the world for sponsors. Beijing was long favored to win the election.

But China's abhorrent human rights record posed a significant threat to Beijing's bid. Commentary from around the world expressed fears that awarding Beijing the Games would legitimize the more oppressive aspects of its rule.