Despite a chequered view globally on his role in the history of the Olympic movement, Juan Antonio Samaranch is larger than life in at least one country: China. The former president of the International Olympic Committee, who turns 87 this month, has proved just that with another tour - his 17th - to the mainland this week.
Many Beijing residents might know little about the state visit of Spanish King Juan Carlos with television screens filled with the avuncular looks of Samaranch, who was supposed to be part of the monarch's entourage above all.
At the opening of the 13th Olympic Collectors Fair in the capital last Sunday, Samaranch's first public appearance of the eventful trip, large crowds pushed and shoved for a glimpse, or, if lucky enough, an autograph, of the Olympic patriarch in the sultry weather.
'Sir Samaranch is an old friend of the Chinese people,' read a banner at the entrance of the exhibition hall bearing hundreds of signatures.
Among the adorers was Zhang Yansheng, a 68-year-old worker from Hubei province. 'I had a haircut yesterday,' said Zhang. 'In China, being tidy is a pretty important part of the etiquette for receiving such a distinguished guest as Samaranch.'
The tribute was the first in a series of adulatory events during a week in which Samaranch received an honorary professorship from an elite university, lectured at an Olympics volunteers training camp and helped launch a national youth tennis academy. Everywhere he went, people followed.