Astrologists.asia

In 2008, the Olympics are scheduled to start at 8:08pm on the 8/8/08, and there’s a reason for that. Ostensibly, the early August date was chosen so as to avoid scheduling conflicts with the US Open tennis and American baseball later in the month. However, the specific choice of the 8-heavy date as opposed to any other was not a matter of enjoyable alliteration, or picking a date that would be memorable: Chinese numerology, and the superstition that the number 8 is lucky, also played a role.

Eight is considered a lucky number in many Asian cultures, because it sounds similar to the word “prosper” or “wealth”. People will pay a premium for a telephone number with many 8s, or an address or car license plate with that number. In contrast, unlucky numbers contain the number 4, which sounds like the word for death, so expect to see apartment buildings that are missing the floors 4, 14, and 24.

Organisers of the Beijing Olympics marked the days leading to the Olympics with a countdown clock, counting down 800 days to 8/8/08. As well as being the start of the Olympics, many couples will be marrying on that date, counting on its auspiciousness and meaning. To cope with demand, Beijing has been accepting advance reservations for three times the usual number of ceremonies.

Particularly lucky this year, and casting an auspicious eye on proceedings, is the IOC Honorary Life President Juan Antonio Samaranch, who will be 88 years old for the 2008 Olympics. The organisers of the Beijing Olympics chose not to cover the main stadium, leaving the matter of rain on the opening ceremony to chance. At least, chance, the selection of an auspicious starting date, and cloud seeding in the days before. Outside of China, other cultures also consider the number 8 lucky. Banthoom Lamsam, an Olympic torchbearer in Thailand, had the good fortune to run the 8th section of the relay in Bangkok. “8 is my luck number,” he told Xinhua.

So how about for the athletes, competing at this years games? Athletes can come up with all manner of superstitions and rituals to ensure that they repeat a good performance and avoid a poor showing. For Chinese athletes, competing on home field, with the good will of their nation behind them, an auspicious date can only be in their favour. Look to see if the Chinese rowing eights outperform their rivals, if their soccer midfielder (traditionally wearing the number 8 jersey) does unusually well, or if the runner in lane 8 gains a psychological edge. Although in a distance race, where runners are staggered along inside and outside lanes, the number one is in fact the most auspicious lane. The athlete is closer to the starting gun, and can gain a 150 millisecond head start over the runner in lane 8, which can mean a 1 metre difference by the end of the race.

Now there’s a good test to see if lucky number 8 holds true.