Today, Britain welcomed home its heroes from China at Heathrow airport. British Airways painted the nose of the plane gold, and the media lined up to greet the mass of athletes and medalists home as heroes for making Beijing the best Games Team GB has had for over 100 years.
Athens 2004 saw one of the smallest squads to come from these isles in many a year, yet they achieved a lot. Kelly Holmes and Amir Khan were notable success stories to come out from Greece.
Just over a month ago one of the best funded and biggest teams flew to the Team GB training camp in Macau, ready for the Games. Back in the UK there was little hype about these Games, with "moderate" targets set for our team.
What followed was more than even the most ambitious people could have dreamed of.
Before the Games, double gold medal winner James Cracknell sent them a letter which was on the wall in Team GB's HQ:
"What truly matters is that you can look into the mirror after you have competed and tell the person staring back: 'There was nothing more I could have done.'
"If you can't say that, you'll always regret it and wonder what would have happened if you had given everything. Don't feel like that. Leave all you've got on the field of play."
This set the tone for the Olympics in the GB camp.
Team GB first struck gold on Day Two of the Games, when Nicole Cooke won the women's road race in atrocious conditions. Team GB was off the mark in style and the next day saw Rebecca Adlington and Joanne Jackson take gold and bronze respectively in the same women's 400m freestyle swimming event.
Day Four saw three more medals: one silver and two bronze. David Florence won silver in men's canoe slalom, and the eventing team won both bronzes. Day Five saw the start of a rush for Britain when Emma Pooley gained a silver in the women's time-trial cycling.
Day Seven saw Chris Hoy, Jamie Staff, and Jason Kenny win gold in the men's team sprint. Then came Saturday, Aug. 16, the day the UK stood up and took note of what was happening on the other side of the world.
That day, Day Eight, saw nine medals added to the tally. Rebecca Adlington scored gold in the women's 800m freestyle in fantastic style, with a new world record. Cyclists then took center stage, with Bradley Wiggins and Chris Hoy claiming golds in the individual events and Ross Edgar scoring silver in the Keirin behind Hoy to claim a one-two finish.
The men's four also won gold, but that wasn't the last from the Velodrome. Chris Newton and Steven Burke scored bronzes and two rowing bronzes boosted the medal tally.
Day Nine saw eight more medals added, with Rebecca Romero (cycling), Mark Hunter and Zac Purchase (rowing), Ben Ainslie (sailing), and Sarah Ayton, Sharah Webb, and Pippa Wilson (yngling) all winning golds.
Three silvers followed from the worlds of cycling and rowing, as well as a brilliant bronze for Louis Smith in the gymnastics on the pummel horse.
Day 10 saw a gold and a silver in cycling and sailing respectively. Day 11 saw sailing again generate a gold and two cycling golds with Chris Hoy winning gold No. 3 and Pendleton adding to the tally. But Christine Ohuruogu's gold made for Team GB's first athletics medal.
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