BEIJING, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) — Overjoyed Chinese cheered and applauded in front of their TVs at home, beneath big screens in bustling city squares or in remote villages on Friday night, sharing the passion and glory of the long-anticipated Olympic Games as they opened in Beijing.

    The glittering opening ceremony inside the new National Stadium, or Bird’s Nest, in the capital, was witnessed by more than 100,000 in the stands and by billions in China and around the world as it was live broadcast.

    Many people interviewed by Xinhua said they felt honored and proud that their country was finally able to host the biggest sports event in the world.

    Thousands of local residents gathered beneath a giant screen at Shangxiajiu Square in Guangzhou, in southern China, to watch the opening ceremony. Many wore T-shirts saying "I Love China" and "Go, China" and many of their faces were painted with Olympic symbols.

    At one dormitory in Guangzhou, more than 100 laborers from rural areas gathered to watch the event on TV.

    "Usually I don’t watch sports too much on TV, but I couldn’t miss it this time. Our country is getting stronger every day. I think all of us should be proud," said 22-year-old Zhou Xiaobing.

    Watching fireworks over the splendid Bird’s Nest was a particularly moving moment for construction worker Ma Yonghong, for he was once among thousands of builders of the landmark stadium in northern Beijing.

    Ma held a small party on Friday night, inviting several of his fellow workers to beer.

    "There are so much to celebrate tonight, for Olympics and also for ourselves," said Ma at a construction site in Xi’an, northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, his current workplace.

    "We spent two years working in Bird’s Nest. Till now, I can still remember the sizes of wash basins and faucets I had installed inside the stadium," Ma said jokingly.

    China spent billions of dollars to build state-of-art stadia, sports facilities and infrastructure for the Olympics in Beijing and six co-host cities, fulfilling its commitments made seven years ago when Beijing won the right to host the Games.

    Jacques Rogge, president of the International Olympic Committee, on Friday night offered warm thanks to the Beijing Olympics organizers for its tireless work.

    Seven-year-long anticipation and imagination came to an end when the Chinese President Hu Jintao announced the opening of the 29th Olympic Games, which draws over 16,000 athletes from 204 countries and regions.

    Su Shaoyun, who lives at a small town Baofeng in northwest China’s Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, said she was thrilled by the opening ceremony masterminded by famous Chinese film director Zhang Yimou.

    "All those audio and video technologies in the performance made me feel like in the space age," said Su.

    BEIJING, Aug. 9 (Xinhua) — Czech markswoman Katerina Emmons led all the way to snatch the gold medal in women’s 10-meter air rifle, the first gold of the Beijing Olympics.

    Emmons’ winning total of 503.5 points also improved the Olympic record of the discipline by a margin of 1.5 points.

    Among the slowest to finish, the 25-year-old blonde equaled world record of qualification round with a perfect 400 points. In the ten-shot final, she did well at the beginning but lapsed at the third shot with a 9.7 points.

    However, the Athens Olympic bronze medallist managed to adjust herself quickly to follow with a 10.9, which incurred thunderous applauses.

    Always the last to open fire, Emmons scored the following five shots above ten.

    Although she finished her impressive performance with a 9.9 at last shot, it was high enough to ensure her a first Olympic gold.

    Sheding tears in excitement, the pretty shooter turned around to embrace and kiss her husband, American shooter and Olympic champion Matthew Emmons, who had been watching behind her throughout the qualification and the final.

    "It was a real break," she said emotionally.

    "The competition was hard for all of us. I am glad it is over," added the champion.

    Talking about her husband, the girl had happiness written on her face. "It was great to have him here," she beamed, "We played as a team, maybe one of the best."

    The silver medal was grabbed by famous Russian shooter Lioubov Galkina with 502.1 points after a seesaw battle with Croat rising star Snjezana Pejcic.

    The latter, a 26-year-old debutant who got bronze in 50-meter rifle three positions at the Munich World Cup earlier this year, settled for a bronze with 500.9 points.

    The 35-year-old Galkina was also silver medalist at the Athens Olympics in 2004, when she was outscored by Chinese shooter Du Li only after the last single shot.

    "I was happy with the result," she said on Saturday after the competition.

    "Last time I lost the gold medal, while this time, I earned the silver," said the new mother who withdrew last year in competitions due to pregnancy.

    Regaining her sharpness quickly this year, Galkina said that her qualification score, 399, was her best this season.

    Du Li, Athens Olympic champion and former Olympic record holder, seemed out of gear and finished fifth with 499.6 points. She achieved 399 points in the qualification round. But in the final, she scored none of her shots above 10.5 point.

    Stepping out of the final hall, the 26-year-old girl from the eastern Shandong Province cried.

    Both Emmons and Galkina "felt sad" for their Chinese counterpart.

    "She could have played better, but she had too much pressure," said Emmons, who wanted to give her flowers to Du as comfort.

    Galkina noted that it was both "good and bad to play at home". "She did well in the qualification round," she said.

    Their opinions were shared by Xiao Haopeng, leader of the Chinese shooting squad.

    "She faces great pressure on her own soil and tried her best. Her qualification score reflects her normal level," he said.

    But in the final, Xiao found all her shots deflected. "Maybe there was something wrong with her aiming area," he said.

    In previous competitions, Du was slow in pulling the trigger like Emmons. But this time, she appeared impatient, Xiao explained.

    German left-handed shooter, double world record holder Sonja Pfeilschifter, chalked in 396 points in the qualification round and failed to appear in the final.