How did it come to pass? When China emerged from the mad Mao era a few decades ago they were sporting lightweights, but today they are a powerhouse that produces battalions of Olympic medal winners. In Athens they were second only to the United States in terms of gold medals collected, and some predict they will take the number one slot by the time the games come to Beijing.
It's a curious phenomenon in a country without a strong sporting culture. They have developed a knack of producing champions in sports that they have absolutely no tradition in. You sit on a beach in Brazil and watch how the kids control a football and you can see how that nation churns out World Cup-winning teams.
You see a Kenyan villager running 10km to school at dizzy altitudes and you can envisage that child becoming an impressive long-distance runner.
But in China, at the grassroots level, there is no strong amateur sporting culture, and it seems most kids would rather spend their spare time playing video games or shopping than shooting hoops or plunging in a pool. Yet an ever-increasing number of their athletes are finding ways to the podium. So what is China's secret recipe?
Ask coaches, athletes and sports officials around the country and they invariably give most of the credit to the same thing: the national system, the machine that spits out world champions despite the nation's weak sporting roots.
The athletes have benefited from the position that modern China finds itself in: a one-party centrally controlled state that is fuelled by a vibrant market economy. The Communist Party craves sporting glory. As the nation's political and economic might grows, sporting success is seen as an essential component in building the confidence and stature of an emerging nation.