The Beijing Games 2008 promise to be one of the most exciting Olympics in history of the Games. An Asian city has acted as Olympic host only twice before—Tokyo in 1964 and Seoul in 1988. Beijing won a hotly contested selection process in competition with bids from Istanbul, Osaka, Paris and Toronto. It was a defining moment for China and for athletes across Asia.

Some 10,500 of the best athletes in the world will be coming to Beijing for the XXIX Olympiad, scheduled to run from August 8-24th. Twenty-eight summer sports are on the Olympic calendar for Beijing 2008.

Singapore also aims to make sports history at the Beijing Games, by winning its first medal in more than 40 years. Weightlifter Tan Howe Liang won a silver medal at 1960 Olympic Games in Rome. In 2000 table tennis player Jing Junghong narrowly missed a bronze medal, a scenario that was repeated at the 2004 Athens Games. Li Jiawei, who has been a five-time Sportswoman of the Year, played her heart out to a fourth place finish.

Although the near misses were disappointing, they also confirmed the country’s rising quality of its athletes and long-term athlete development programs. Since 2001, Singapore has aggressively invested in promoting sports to the general population and in funding the development of elite athletes.

To add further impetus to the government’s support of athlete development, SNOC, SSC and MCYS recently introduced Project 0812, a new funding stream for a select group of potential medalists at Beijing 2008 and London 2012.