Belarusian flag raised in Olympic Village

The Belarusian flag was raised in the Olympic Village in Beijing on August 7. Attending the ceremony were more than 100 people. The flag-raising ceremony symbolizes the official presentation of the delegation of the Republic of Belarus at the Olympic Games. The Belarusian flag was followed by the flags of Spain, Fiji and Monaco. China has carried out a considerable amount of work to get ready for 2008 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games. The organizers of the Games spent about $42 billion on the preparation for this event (the Olympic Games in Greece cost about $15 billion). Hundreds of new objects have been constructed in Beijing, including the Bird's Nest main Olympic stadium and the Water Cube aquatics stadium.