For the Chinese athletics team, the World Athletics Championships is considered a test event in preparation for the 2008 Olympic Games.
The biggest winners at the championships this time were the U.S. team, who had every reason to celebrate at the closing ceremony. They topped the medal standings with 14 golds, four silvers and eight bronzes, far ahead of Kenya and Russia.
China managed 11th place in the competition, and their highlight was without doubt Liu Xiang's gold medal in the men's 110m hurdles. He became the first man from China to win gold in the event at a world championship.
Another historic breakthrough for China came when Zhou Chunxiu won the silver medal in the women's marathon, the first medal in that event for China in world championships history.
And Zhang Wenxiu won a bronze in the women's hammer throw, becoming China's first athlete to stand on the hammer throw podium in the World Championships. With one gold, one silver and one bronze, China achieved its best results since 1993 at the world athletics championships, boosting their confidence ahead of the Beijing Olympic Games. But despite the achievements, a large gap still remains between China and other top athletics countries.
