Olympic stadiums and gymnasiums in Beijing such as the Bird's Nest and the Water Cube (the National Aquatics Center) are all material heritages of the Beijing Olympic Games that record the glories and dreams of the games. These tangible Olympic heritages no doubt will make us take pride in, and yet those intangible Olympic heritages like being civilized, being etiquette-observing, being rational and tolerant, and citizen's awareness of their obligations…are even more precious spiritual wealth and are sufficient for us to entertain more expectations to the "post-Olympic era". As Hein Verbruggen, chairman of the Coordination Commission for the IOC puts it, "I see the Olympic standard here."

　　As a matter of fact, there are a lot of reports related to the Olympic standard: During the games, Beijing sets a higher safety standard for the Olympic-purposed foods than the international standard. Tianjin used odd-even license plate restrictions on vehicles in certain hours. Shenyang became a smoke-free Olympic city where no smoking was allowed in taxis and hospitals….How much ice will these Olympic standards cut in the post-Olympic real life depends largely on if they can remain in effect after the games.

　　The Olympic standards are conducive to transforming the economic development pattern and enhancing the social development level and the government's administration capability. Thanks to the Olympic environmental protection standards, the air quality of Beijing has approached the benchmark of the international level, the Olympic work standards have promoted the work efficiency, and the marked imprint of people-oriented social administration has become more prominent. In a word, a great deal of Olympic standards has sunk deep into the hearts of people and become precious spiritual heritages of the Beijing Olympic Games.

　　The development of history has proved that a short experience may serve as a great turning point. The impact that brings about by the grand Olympic event on science and technology, environmental protection, construction and cultural exchange is palpable. From this point of view, the Olympic standards are not only a display of China's achievements of reform and opening-up for three decades, but also a starting point for a new journey to the future.

　　If the Olympic Games is compared to a temporary "procuratorial station" of these standards, then the real "procurators" will be all the Chinese people. Therefore, when we applaud the Olympic standards, we also expect that these Olympic standards can be sustainable, so as to enable us to share the abundant Olympic fruits in the long run.

　　By Zhang Tiannan

　　(Aug 28, PLA Daily)                                                         Editor: Dong Zhaohui