Before getting on a plane in Beijing to depart for Nanjing for the FIBA Diamond Ball tournament, Yao Ming was seen reading the book (translated into Chinese), “And the Walls Came Tumbling Down: Greatest Closing Arguments Protecting Civil Liberties” by Michael S. Lief and Mitchell H. Caldwell.

We all knew Yao was smart, and this just confirms it.

Click here for more photos of Yao at the airport with his teammates.

This report comes from the official Beijing 2008 Olympics Web site:

(BEIJING, July 27) — Feng Jianzhong, deputy director of the General Administration of Sport of China, told Xinhua that although some ideas are in the works regarding who will be hoisting the Chinese flag upon their shoulders during the opening ceremony of the Games, nothing (or no one) has yet been confirmed.

In the past six Summer Games in which China has participated, all flag bearers have been men. This year, according to public opinion polls on the internet, female athletes are also being held in high regard for the coveted position. China’s Zhao Ruirui, member of the women’s volleyball team, Guo Jingjing, the “Diving Princess,” and Zhang Yining, table tennis star, are among the top female candidates for the part.

“Everyone wants to be a flag bearer; of course I want to be one, too!” NBA star Yao exclaimed.

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Raymond has some fantastic photos in the YaoMania! forum from the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympic Village where the athletes will stay.

Check out Yao in the cool red and white uniform…

Click here for more photos of Yao at the event. He seems so proud to be representing his country.

Click here for the news story, which highlights that the air pollution in Beijing is still terrible despite efforts to try to reduce it before the Games begin. Or watch this video:

Ironically, reportedly the Chinese basketball team will not be staying at the Olympic Village during the Games. Instead, they will stay at the Tiantan Apartments at the National Sports Bureau, which is closer to their competition venue: Wukesong Stadium.

Tomorrow Yao and his basketball teammates will leave for Nanjing for the FIBA Diamond Ball tournament. If things work out, there’s a chance that China could play Argentina on August 1st where Yao would face-off against Rocket teammate Luis Scola.

Below is a photo of Yao doing the cheer:

Here are the steps:

Step 1: Clap two times (while chanting ??, “Olympics”)
Step 2: Hands in fists with thumbs up, arms extended upward (while chanting, ??, “Let’s go!”)
Step 3: Clap two time (while chanting ??, “China”)
Step 4: Hands in fists, arms extended outward and upward (while chanting ??, “Let’s go!”)

Thanks again to Raymond for this great content.

Below is a 30-second clip titled “Removing the Mountain” ??, which comes from a famous Chinese idiom ????, literally meaning a stubborn and determined man trying to remove a big mountain; a man of fortitude who is not afraid of difficulties and is full of determination to win and has the courage to surmount every difficulty. It has some pretty cool effects:

It got crazy in Beijing on Friday when a horde of fans showed up to buy the remaining 820,000 tickets for Olympic events, and it got testy between police and journalists. This from The Wall Street Journal…

A last-minute sale of Olympics tickets in Beijing turned into sometimes violent confrontations between police and several Hong Kong reporters, raising new questions about how Chinese authorities will treat the thousands of journalists coming for next month’s Games.

Click here for more of the story.

Here’s a video taken before the problems arose with people camping out long in advance to try to get tickets.

On Friday, Yao Ming attended an unveiling of the Chinese delegation to the Olympics, made up of 639 athletes. Check out all the photos here.

Here’s the story from Reuters:

China unveiled its largest delegation for any Olympic Games on Friday, naming 639 athletes behind closed doors to represent the host nation in Beijing.

The Chinese athletes preparing for the Games have been kept away from the media and requests to attend the unveiling of the delegation were refused for all but 10 reporters from state media.

Raymond, our YMM correspondent in China, has found the following interesting tidbits.

Here’s a link to an article about Chinese President Hu Jintao‘s visit to the National Sports Bureau yesterday to talk to his country’s athletes. During his visit to the Chinese basketball national team, he asked Yao about the status of the rehab on his foot.

Below is a video that gives fans a behind-the-scenes look at the preparation of various Chinese national teams, like gymnastics, synchronized swimming, weight lifting, table tennis, basketball, and volleyball. The Yao Ming piece is from the 7:40 to 8:40 minute mark.

Below is another video that has some behind-the-scenes clips of the charity short films for the Sichuan earthquake that internationally famous Chinese director Chen Kaige took with Yao Ming as the leading actor. The shorts will be publicly released in China nationwide within the week.

Raymond has another translation of an article written about Yao’s outlook on the tough pairings the Chinese have in the Olympics, which now includes Greece and Germany!

Here’s a good video on the pressure that’s facing China’s Liu Xiang and Yao Ming in the upcoming Olympic games: