听力原文： The organizers of the Olympic Games in Beijing have marked the start of the year-long countdown to the event with an elaborate ceremony in Tiananmen Square. The exact moment the Games will begin next August was greeted with a fireworks display and 10,000 guests were entertained by troops of dancers and musicians. The festivities here in Tiananmen Square were a display of China's skill in pouring off a meticulously planned celebration. It included traditional song and dance from people of all ethnic backgrounds in China, a spectacular fireworks display, all below the portrait of Chairman Mao in front of the Forbidden City. China's financial might and its endless supply of labor has ensured the state-of-the-art venues will be completed well ahead of schedule and many of them, especially the National Stadium known as 'the Birds Nest', take the breath away. The ceremony celebrating the countdown of the Olympic Games manifested China's ______ .