The China Youth Daily Social Survey Center has carried out research on audience concerns during the Olympic Games.

More than two thirds of the public are primarily interested with the sports event, with almost one third paying attention to the 'stars' and 'idols'. Of the two thirds, over half of them are concerned with the Olympic spirit, and the remaining group prefers to focus on who will actually win.

An article in China Youth Daily says during the "Good Luck Beijing" test games last May, when Liu Xiang was on performance, there was thundering applause at the Track and Field stadium. However, after Liu's race, most of the audience started to leave despite the fact that the games hadn't come to a close.

The paper quotes a football fan as says that although it seems pretty normal that people leave the games venue early, the condition at the Olympics should be very different from any other commercial competitions. It says when the Chinese watch the Olympic Games, the whole world is watching China, so the audience bears a national image.

The article believes that first and foremost, the audience should follow the rules of the games and of the sports venues. They should also show due respect to the athletes as a reflection of the Olympic spirit.