Beijing 2008: one world, one dream

This chapter reveals the development of the sport participation legacy of the 2008 Games against the backdrop of change in China’s socio-economic and sport policy context. It starts by providing a brief review of China’s mass sport policy and management structure. The chapter then examines the participation legacy plans and outcomes of the Games. Our analysis highlights there was a sophisticated legacy strategy for mass sport development during the 2008 Games despite it not being a top priority for the staging of the Games. Nonetheless, survey data indicated a surge in frequent sport participant number in Beijing during 2001–8, though the increase was non-sustainable and remained stagnant post-Games. The attributable effects of the Games on the change were difficult to ascertain, and given the increasing importance of mass participation sport post-2008 Games, there is a need for future studies to gain a comprehensive understanding of the outcomes of sport participation legacy.