Beijing Olympics FAQ 2008

Beijing Olympics FAQ 2008
Questions about China or the Games? We've got answers

Kids, got a question about the Olympic Games or the 2008 host country, China? Ask us and we'll get the answers. Send your question here. Be sure to include your name, your age and the name of the town where you live. Our team of reporters and editors in Beijing will try to answer as many as possible.

Q: Does it hurt when to do a split? It looks like it hurts badly.

-From Julian, 9, and his sister Jessica, 10½, of Chicago

A: "When I was young and first learning splits, yes it sort of hurt," says Samantha Peszek, 16, a member of the U.S. Women's Gymnastics team. "But now that I do splits every day and have them all the way down to the floor, it doesn't hurt anymore," says Samantha, who lives in Indianapolis. "My advice is to work on splits daily and the more you do them the less it will hurt. Eventually you'll have your splits all the way down and it will be fun to show your flexibility!"

Q: What do the colors in the Olympic flag stand for?

-From Lydia J., 3, of Chicago

A: The five linked, colored rings on the flag stand for the five continents, or major geographic regions, of the world: Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe and Oceania. But each color isn't supposed to represent just one continent; all five colors taken together stand for the continents universally. Meanwhile, the flag of every nation that takes part in the Games shares at least one of the six colors that also is in the Olympic flag: blue, yellow, black, green, red and white.

Q: How many years have the Summer Olympics been held?

-From Stanley C., 10, of Chicago

A: Summer Olympic Games have been held for 114 years, for the most part every four years. Including the Olympic Games taking place now in Beijing, 26 Summer Olympics have been held, starting in Athens in 1896. However, the Olympics in Beijing are officially referred to as the 29th, or XXIX Olympiad, because the Games were canceled in 1916, during World War I, and in 1940 and 1944, during World War II.

Q: How many people live in China?

-From Suky C., 7, of Chicago

A: Nearly 1.3 billion people live in China, or more than one-fifth of the world's population. That means one out of every five people in the world lives there.

Q: What is the tallest building in China?

-From Louis C., 9, of Chicago

A: Several of the tallest buildings in the world are in Asia, mostly in China, and more are under construction. But for the moment, the tallest building in China is probably the World Financial Center in Shanghai. It's 1,614 feet high, or about 163 feet taller than Chicago's tallest building, the Sears Tower (1,451 feet tall). But it gets a little complicated: If you include Taiwan as part of China, the tallest building is Taipei 101, which is 1,671 feet tall to the top of its spire.