The Beijing Olympics allowed the Chinese people to present themselves as more romantic to the world, according to Xinhua News Agency:
Zhang Yimou, the famed film director and the opening ceremony director, said the 2008 Beijing Olympics provided a stage for the world to know better how romantic Chinese were.
It changed preconceptions of Chinese people by foreigners, and also changed the Chinese people’s own perceptions, the article continues:
“The Chinese are getting more outgoing, partially because they have growing confidence over themselves and the country,” said Professor Zhang Yiwu of the Chinese Department at the elite Peking University.
“The Chinese used to prefer to act as someone better than themselves. Now they want to be natural and outgoing. This is a big change,” he said.
Cameras recorded how the nation behaved in the romantic way during the Olympics, which was quite different from the traditional and stereotyped “inarticulate” Chinese.
“The Chinese, since ancient times, have never lacked the sense of being romantic … romance has long been blended into the Chinese blood,” director Zhang said.
