2008 Chevy Rock & Roll 400, Summary, Chasing The Chase
Greg Biffle and Kevin Harvick were exempt as per the Top 35 Owner Points standings rule, both started the race and clinched spots. This left seven drivers and five spaces in the chase. With the assumption that both past two-time champion Tony Stewart and 2003 series champion Matt Kenseth made the chase, the three that were "sitting on the bubble" are all qualifiers from last year's Chase: four-time series champion Jeff Gordon, Clint Bowyer and Denny Hamlin.


2008 Chevy Rock & Roll 400, Summary, Chasing The Chase
Just below them were David Ragan, who was 17 points out of the chase in 13th and Kasey Kahne, 48 points out of the chase in 14th. In addition, both Hamlin and Bowyer had won races in the Commonwealth of Virginia this season, and they carried a ten-point bonus into the Chase if they make it; Hamlin winning the spring event at Martinsville and Bowyer the most recent Richmond race. Kahne held two wins (the Memorial Day Charlotte race and the June race at Pocono); Ragan has not won a race despite being the most improved driver this season, while Jeff Gordon's last win was last October in Charlotte.


2008 Chevy Rock & Roll 400, Pre-race news, Qualifying
As earlier stated, Hanna caused the cancellation of the qualifying of the race, and the field was set by the rulebook.


2008 Chevy Rock & Roll 400, Pre-race news, Qualifying
Failed to make race as a result of qualifying being cancelled by rain: Joey Logano (#02), Sterling Marlin (#09), Tony Raines (#34).


2008 Chevy Rock & Roll 400, Race Recap
David Reutimann dominated the race and led 268 laps, but a braking problem cut his hopes short. It was Jimmie Johnson who took over and won the race by holding off a determined Tony Stewart. David Ragan's chances of making the chase were all but finished when he was involved in an incident with teammate Matt Kenseth. Jimmie Johnson held off Tony Stewart and win the first daytime fall race at Richmond since 1990.


2008 Chevy Rock & Roll 400, Race Recap
It was the first Sprint Cup race since the 2007 Sylvania 300 where all 43 cars started finished the race, with no retirements.


2008 Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly election
The Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly election, 2008 was held on 14 November 2008 and 20 November 2008, to select the 90 members of the Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly. The results of the election were announced on 8 December. Incumbent Chief Minister Raman Singh and his Bharatiya Janata Party won the elections.


2008 Chicago Bears season
The 2008 Chicago Bears season was the franchise's 89th regular season in the National Football League. They finished the 2008 season with a 9–7 record, improving upon their 7–9 record from the 2007 season. The Bears failed to qualify for the playoffs for the second consecutive season.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Offseason, Offseason transactions
Following their 7–9 finish in the 2007 season, the Bears were faced with many issues to address heading into the  2008 NFL season. In an interview, Jerry Angelo, the team's general manager, stated the Bears will seek to bring stability to their offense by creating competition for their current running backs and quarterbacks through free agency and the upcoming draft. The team's running game ranked near last in almost every statistical category, while the Bears had to rely on three different quarterbacks to finish the season.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Offseason, Offseason transactions
Additionally, the Bears were faced with many questions pertaining to their aging offensive line, which was ridden with injuries and inconsistent play throughout the 2007 season. A week before free agency started, the Bears opted to extend Alex Brown's contract, who recorded three sacks, two tackles for loss, one interception, five pass breakups, two forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery after reclaiming his starting job. The same day, the Bears parted with Muhsin Muhammad, Fred Miller, and Darwin Walker.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Offseason, Offseason transactions
A few days later, Jerry Angelo stated the franchise would not re-sign Ruben Brown, and suggested the team was in the process of rebuilding their offensive line. The Bears then focused their attention to their quarterbacks; re-signing Rex Grossman, and extending Kyle Orton's contract for another year. The team considered releasing Brian Griese in order to avoid a $300,000 dollar bonus, but eventually traded him to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for a sixth round draft pick in the 2009 NFL Draft.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Offseason, Offseason transactions
Finally, the Bears were left to deal with their top three free agents, Brendon Ayanbadejo, Bernard Berrian, and Lance Briggs. Berrian left the Bears to play with the Minnesota Vikings, agreeing to a six-year contract worth $42-million dollars. On the same day, the Bears signed Briggs to a six-year, $36 million contract. The Bears also decided not to pursue Ayanbadejo, and allowed him to sign with the Baltimore Ravens. With their top-two wide receivers gone, the team re-acquired Marty Booker, who had been released from the Miami Dolphins. The Bears also signed former Washington Redskins wide receiver Brandon Lloyd. The team then signed restricted free agent Rashied Davis to a one-year, $927,000 tender on April 18, and later signed him to a three-year contract worth $5.86 million. The Bears then released safety Adam Archuleta after the 2008 NFL Draft.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Offseason, Offseason transactions
The Bears were forced to also part with Cedric Benson after two run-ins with the law in Austin, Texas. Benson was first arrested for allegedly operating a boat while under the influence of alcohol. Only weeks after the incident, he was arrested again for reportedly driving while intoxicated. Benson denied the allegations that he was drunk and claimed that he was mistreated by the police on the first occasion. Angelo and Smith voiced a general sense of disappointment towards Benson's actions, and eventually opted to terminate his career with the organization. With Benson's departure the team had lost their passing (Griese), receiving (Berrian), and rushing (Benson) leaders from the previous season.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Offseason, Offseason transactions
The Bears were reluctant to sign free agents to fill vacancies on their team. Angelo stated that he believed "free agency begins at home". The team invested a great deal of money in order to re-sign various players, including place kicker Robbie Gould, defensive tackle Tommie Harris, tight end Desmond Clark, and wide receiver Rashied Davis. Various veteran running backs, such as Kevin Jones and Shaun Alexander, were reportedly interested in filling Benson's absence, The team acquired P.J. Pope and rookie Matt Lawrence for competition and depth, and later Jones in mid-July.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Offseason, NFL Draft
The Bears held the fourteenth overall pick in the 2008 NFL Draft. In addition to their six other regular picks, the team acquired an additional third-round draft pick as a result of a trade with the San Diego Chargers. The Bears also traded third-round picks with the San Francisco 49ers, and obtained their fifth round pick as a result of attempting to negotiate with Lance Briggs's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, before the trading deadline in October 2007. The League has also awarded the Bears with three compensatory picks, which are all in the  draft's seventh round.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Offseason, NFL Draft
As widely speculated by many draft analysts, The Bears used their first three draft picks to select offensive players. The team drafted Chris Williams from Vanderbilt to address holes in their offensive lines, Matt Forte from Tulane to help solidify their running game, and Earl Bennett to assist their wide receiver corp. Other rookies, such as Craig Steltz and Marcus Monk were drafted to provide additional depth and competition to their respective positions. The team also acquired several undrafted rookie after the draft. Caleb Hanie and Nick Hill were signed to add competition and extra depth to the Bears quarterback position. The Bears signed Williams, their last unsigned draft pick, on July 23, 2008.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Offseason, NFL Draft
As of the 2012 season, half of the drafted rookies (Marcus Harrison, Ervin Baldwin, Chester Adams, Joey LaRocque, Kirk Barton and Marcus Monk) are not on the team, with every 7th round pick (Baldwin, Adams, LaRocque, Barton, and Monk) by the team being gone by the end of the season (Baldwin is the lone exception).


2008 Chicago Bears season, Offseason, Mini camps
The Bears held several scattered mini-camp and Organized Team Activity (OTA) workouts throughout May, and up to mid-June. Brian Urlacher, who had previously stated he would forgo the team's mini-camps in order due to issues with his contract, was among several Bears players to attend the training sessions. All players who were previously injured in the previous season, including veteran safety Mike Brown and cornerback Nathan Vasher, were cleared to practice. The Bears concluded their mini-camp sessions on June 18, with rookie Matt Forte as the team's top running back.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Offseason, Training camp
All members of the Bears reported to the team's summer training facility at Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais, Illinois, except for Devin Hester, who missed the first two days of camp due to a contract dispute. Chris Williams, the team's top draft pick, missed the camp's first weekend after sustaining a minor back injury. He was later diagnosed with separate injury, a herniated disc, which required minor surgery to repair. The Bears had not given a time table pertaining to Williams' return.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Offseason, Training camp
His fellow offensive lineman, Terrence Metcalf was also required to have surgery to repair his knee, and is also sidelined indefinitely. The Bears held their last training camp session of the summer on August 15, 2008. Lovie Smith was generally pleased with team's progress, and stated, "Guys were fighting for positions. All of them have stepped up and we'll just keep that evaluation going. To me, a successful camp a lot of times is when you get out injury free and we've done that for the most part. And again we've gotten good work done."


2008 Chicago Bears season, Offseason, Gallery
Linebackers Hunter Hillenmeyer (92) and Lance Briggs (55) during camp


2008 Chicago Bears season, Offseason, Gallery
Grossman's counterpart and eventual starting quarterback Kyle Orton passes to running back Garrett Wolfe


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 1: at Indianapolis Colts
The Bears began their 2008 season by recording an upset victory over the Indianapolis Colts at the newly opened Lucas Oil Stadium. The team won the Super Bowl XLI rematch, by a score of 29–13. The Bears offensive attack featured the debut of rookie running back Matt Forté, becoming the first Bears rookie running back to start a game since Walter Payton in 1975, coincidentally against the Baltimore Colts (Anthony Thomas also started as a running back for the Bears in 2001). Forte carried the ball 23 times for 123 yards, including a 50-yard touchdown run. The Colts and Bears exchanged field goals, and then Joseph Addai was dropped for a safety. A Robbie Gould 25-yard field goal on the following drive ended the 1st half.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 1: at Indianapolis Colts
Peyton Manning helped the Colts narrow their deficit by throwing a six-yard touchdown pass to Reggie Wayne. Later in the 3rd quarter, Bears cornerback Charles Tillman forced a fumble, which Lance Briggs picked up and returned for a 21-yard touchdown. The Bears defense was able to contain the Colts the rest of the way, including a key fourth down and one yard stop near midfield early in the fourth quarter. The Bears essentially sealed their victory with 8:56 left on a one-yard touchdown run by fullback Jason McKie. After the game, Al Michaels and John Madden awarded Forte with the Sunday Night Football's "Horse Trailer Player of the Game" award. Adewale Ogunleye received the NFC Defensive Player of the Week award for recording a safety, three tackles-for-loss, and making a key fourth down stop during the game.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 2: at Carolina Panthers
Coming off their upset road win over the Colts, the Bears flew to Bank of America Stadium for a Week 2 intraconference duel with the Carolina Panthers. In the first quarter, Chicago struck first as WR Brandon Lloyd returned a blocked punt 9 yards for a touchdown. In the second quarter, the Bears added onto their lead as kicker Robbie Gould got a 26-yard field goal. The Panthers would respond with kicker John Kasay getting a 37-yard field goal. In the third quarter, Chicago added onto its lead with FB Jason McKie getting a 1-yard TD run. However, Carolina started to rally as Kasay nailed a 45-yard field goal, along with RB Jonathan Stewart getting a 4-yard TD run. In the fourth quarter, the Panthers closed out its game-winning rally with Stewart getting a 1-yard TD run.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Hoping to rebound from their road loss to the Panthers, the Bears played their Week 3 home opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who were led by former Bears QB Brian Griese.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
In the first quarter, Chicago got the early lead as kicker Robbie Gould got a 40-yard and a 43-yard field goal. The Buccaneers would respond with Griese completing a 4-yard TD pass to WR Ike Hilliard. In the second quarter, Tampa Bay increased its lead with DE Gaines Adams returning an interception 45 yards for a touchdown. The Bears closed out the half with Gould's 28-yard field goal.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
In the third quarter, Chicago took the lead with QB Kyle Orton completing a 6-yard TD pass to rookie RB Matt Forté (along with Orton's 2-point conversion pass to WR Brandon Lloyd). In the fourth quarter, the Bears increased their lead with Orton completing a 19-yard TD pass to Lloyd. However, the Buccaneers rallied with kicker Matt Bryant getting a 35-yard field goal, along with Griese's 1-yard TD pass to TE Jerramy Stevens. In overtime, Tampa Bay got the victory as Bryant nailed the game-winning 21-yard field goal. The loss represented the Bears second consecutive loss as a result of a blown fourth quarter lead.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Scoring summary
Q1 – CHI – 12:43 – Robbie Gould 40 yd FG (CHI 3–0)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Scoring summary
Q1 – CHI – 6:10 – Robbie Gould 43 yd FG (CHI 6–0)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Scoring summary
Q1 – TB – 1:50 – 4 yd TD pass from Brian Griese to Ike Hilliard (Matt Bryant kick) (TB 7–6)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Scoring summary
Q2 – TB – 5:26 – Gaines Adams 45 yd interception return TD (Bryant kick) (Bryant kick) (TB 14–6)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Scoring summary
Q2 – CHI – 0:00 – Robbie Gould 28 yd FG (TB 14–9)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Scoring summary
Q3 – CHI – 2:54 – 6 yd TD pass from Kyle Orton to Matt Forté (2-pt conversion pass from Kyle Orton to Brandon Lloyd) (CHI 17–14)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Scoring summary
Q4 – CHI – 6:38 – 19 yd TD pass from Kyle Orton to Brandon Lloyd (Gould kick) (CHI 24–14)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Scoring summary
Q4 – TB – 3:11 – Matt Bryant 35 yd FG (CHI 24–17)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Scoring summary
Q4 – TB – 0:07 – 1 yd TD pass from Brian Griese to Jerramy Stevens (Bryant kick) (Tied 24–24)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Scoring summary
OT – TB – 4:21 – Matt Bryant 21 yd FG (TB 27–24)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 4: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
The Bears remained a home for week four's Sunday night duel with the Philadelphia Eagles, led by Chicago native Donovan McNabb.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 4: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
In the first quarter, the Bears drew first blood as QB Kyle Orton completed a 19-yard TD pass to TE Greg Olsen. The Eagles responded with McNabb completing a 22-yard TD pass to WR DeSean Jackson. In the second quarter, Chicago responded with Orton completing a 23-yard TD pass to WR Marty Booker. Philadelphia responded with RB Correll Buckhalter getting a 1-yard TD run. The Bears closed out the half with Orton completing a 20-yard TD pass to WR/KR Devin Hester.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 4: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
In the third quarter, the Eagles drew closer as kicker David Akers got a 24-yard field goal. In the fourth quarter, Philadelphia got even closer with Akers kicking a 31-yard field goal. Chicago answered with kicker Robbie Gould nailing a 41-yard field goal. The Eagles were able to mount an offensive drive in the fourth quarter, but after getting a first down at CHI 4, the Eagles were stopped on 3 straight plays from the 1, turning the ball over on downs. The Bears managed to get a first down on the subsequent drive, milking most of the remaining time and allowed the Bears to walk away with a 24–20 victory.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 4: vs. Philadelphia Eagles, Scoring summary
Q1 – CHI – 13:05 – 19 yd TD pass from Kyle Orton to Greg Olsen (Robbie Gould kick) (CHI 7–0)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 4: vs. Philadelphia Eagles, Scoring summary
Q1 – PHI – 8:49 – 22 yd TD pass from Donovan McNabb to DeSean Jackson (David Akers kick (7–7)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 4: vs. Philadelphia Eagles, Scoring summary
Q2 – CHI – 13:58 – 23 yd TD pass from Kyle Orton to Marty Booker (Gould kick) (CHI 14–7)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 4: vs. Philadelphia Eagles, Scoring summary
Q2 – PHI – 11:40 – Correll Buckhalter 1 yd TD run (Akers kick) (14–14)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 4: vs. Philadelphia Eagles, Scoring summary
Q2 – CHI – 1:16 – 20 yd TD pass from Kyle Orton to Devin Hester (Gould kick) (CHI 21–14)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 4: vs. Philadelphia Eagles, Scoring summary
Q3 – PHI – 4:22 – David Akers 24 yd FG (CHI 21–17)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 4: vs. Philadelphia Eagles, Scoring summary
Q4 – PHI – 13:21 – David Akers 31 yd FG (CHI 21–20)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 4: vs. Philadelphia Eagles, Scoring summary
Q4 – CHI – 10:28 – Robbie Gould 41 yd FG (CHI 24–20)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 5: at Detroit Lions
Coming off their Sunday night home win over the Eagles, the Bears flew to Ford Field for a Week 5 NFC North duel with the Detroit Lions. In the first quarter, Chicago drew first blood as kicker Robbie Gould got a 37-yard field goal. In the second quarter, the Bears increased their lead with QB Kyle Orton completing a 9-yard TD pass to rookie RB Matt Forté and a 12-yard TD pass to WR/KR Devin Hester.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 5: at Detroit Lions
In the third quarter, Chicago continued its domination with Forté getting a 1-yard TD run, along with CB Charles Tillman returning an interception 26 yards for a touchdown. Afterwards, the Lions would get their only score of the game as RB Kevin Smith got a 12-yard TD run. In the fourth quarter, the Bears closed out the game with Gould nailing a 45-yard field goal.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 5: at Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q1 – CHI – 6:48 – Robbie Gould 37 yd FG (CHI 3–0)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 5: at Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q2 – CHI – 5:27 – 9 yd TD pass from Kyle Orton to Matt Forté (Gould kick) (CHI 10–0)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 5: at Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q2 – CHI – 1:56 – 12 yd TD pass from Kyle Orton to Devin Hester (Gould kick) (CHI 17–0)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 5: at Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q3 – CHI – 11:17 – Matt Forté 1 yd TD run (Gould kick) (CHI 24–0)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 5: at Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q3 – CHI – 10:10 – Charles Tillman 26 yd interception return TD (Gould kick) (CHI 31–0)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 5: at Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q4 – DET – 7:08 – Kevin Smith 12 yd TD run (Jason Hanson kick) (CHI 31–7)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 5: at Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q4 – CHI – 11:58 – Robbie Gould 45 yd FG (CHI 34–7)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons
Coming off their divisional road win over the Lions, the Bears flew to the Georgia Dome for a Week 6 duel with the Atlanta Falcons. In the first quarter, Chicago trailed early as Falcons kicker Jason Elam got a 29-yard and a 48-yard field goal. In the second quarter, Atlanta increased its lead with Elam getting a 32-yard field goal. The Bears would get on the board as kicker Robbie Gould got a 36-yard field goal.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons
In the third quarter, the Falcons kept increasing their lead as Elam kicked a 41-yard field goal. Chicago began to threaten as rookie RB Matt Forté got a 3-yard TD run. In the fourth quarter, Atlanta answered with QB Matt Ryan completing a 3-yard TD pass to WR Roddy White. The Bears would take the lead as Gould got a 32-yard field goal, and QB Kyle Orton completed an apparent game-winning 17-yard TD pass to WR Rashied Davis with 11 seconds remaining. However, after a poorly performed squib kick and a quick 26-yd pass play which got the Falcons to within the CHI 30 with only 1 second left, the Falcons escaped with a win as Elam nailed the game-winning 48-yard field goal.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons, Scoring summary
Q1 – ATL – 9:13 – Jason Elam 29 yd FG (ATL 3–0)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons, Scoring summary
Q1 – ATL – 0:59 – Jason Elam 48 yd FG (ATL 6–0)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons, Scoring summary
Q2 – ATL – 7:49 – Jason Elam 32 yd FG (ATL 9–0)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons, Scoring summary
Q2 – CHI – 4:02 – Robbie Gould 36 yd FG (ATL 9–3)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons, Scoring summary
Q3 – ATL – 10:36 – Jason Elam 41 yd FG (ATL 12–3)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons, Scoring summary
Q3 – CHI – 2:24 – Matt Forté 3 yd TD run (Gould kick) (ATL 12–10)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons, Scoring summary
Q4 – ATL – 13:25 – 3 yd TD pass from Matt Ryan to Roddy White (Elam kick) (ATL 19–10)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons, Scoring summary
Q4 – CHI – 4:00 – Robbie Gould 32 yd FG (ATL 19–13)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons, Scoring summary
Q4 – CHI – 0:11 – 17 yd TD pass from Kyle Orton to Rashied Davis (Gould kick) (CHI 20–19)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons, Scoring summary
Q4 – ATL – 0:00 – Jason Elam 48 yd FG (ATL 22–20)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings
Hoping to rebound from their last-second road loss to the Falcons, the Bears went home, donned their alternate uniforms, and played a Week 7 NFC North duel with the Minnesota Vikings. In the first quarter, Chicago trailed early as Vikings RB Adrian Peterson got a 1-yard TD run. The Bears responded with QB Kyle Orton completing an 18-yard TD pass to TE Greg Olsen, along with RB Garrett Wolfe returning a blocked punt 17 yards for a touchdown. Minnesota would answer with QB Gus Frerotte completing a 24-yard TD pass to TE Visanthe Shiancoe.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings
In the second quarter, it was back and forth. Chicago kicker Robbie Gould would get a 26-yard field goal, while Vikings kicker Ryan Longwell got a 42-yard field goal. Bears rookie CB Zackary Bowman would recover a fumble from Minnesota's endzone for a touchdown, while Vikings RB Chester Taylor got a 1-yard TD run. Chicago closed out the half as Gould got a 48-yard field goal.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings
In the third quarter, the high-scoring mayhem continued as WR Rashied Davis recovered a fumble within Minnesota's endzone for a touchdown. The Vikings would reply with Peterson getting a 54-yard TD run. Afterwards, the Bears increased their lead as Orton completed a 51-yard TD pass to WR Marty Booker. In the fourth quarter, Chicago continued its run as rookie RB Matt Forté got a 1-yard TD run. Minnesota tried to rally as Longwell nailed a 23-yard field goal, along with Frerotte completing a 5-yard TD pass to former Bears WR Bernard Berrian. Fortunately, Chicago's defense got the game-winning interception to seal the deal.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings
With the win, the Bears went into their bye week at 4–3.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings
The 89 combined points became the highest single-game scoring total in the history of the Bears/Vikings rivalry.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Scoring summary
Q1 – MIN – 9:18 – Adrian Peterson 1 yd TD run (Ryan Longwell kick) (MIN 7–0)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Scoring summary
Q1 – CHI – 6:43 – 18 yd TD pass from Kyle Orton to Greg Olsen (Robbie Gould kick) (7–7)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Scoring summary
Q1 – CHI – 5:43 – Garrett Wolfe 17 yd blocked punt return TD (Gould kick) (CHI 14–7)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Scoring summary
Q1 – MIN – 2:18 – 24 yd TD pass from Gus Frerotte to Visanthe Shiancoe (Longwell kick) (14–14)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Scoring summary
Q2 – CHI – 13:33 – Robbie Gould 26 yd FG (CHI 17–14)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Scoring summary
Q2 – MIN – 9:10 – Ryan Longwell 42 yd FG (17–17)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Scoring summary
Q2 – CHI – 4:58 – Zackary Bowman 0 yd fumble return TD (Gould kick) (CHI 24–17)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Scoring summary
Q2 – MIN – 0:22 – Chester Taylor 1 yd TD run (Longwell kick) (24–24)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Scoring summary
Q2 – CHI – 0:00 – Robbie Gould 48 yd FG (CHI 27–24)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Scoring summary
Q3 – CHI – 12:12 – Rashied Davis 0 yd fumble recovery TD (Gould kick) (CHI 34–24)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Scoring summary
Q3 – MIN – 10:40 – Adrian Peterson 54 yd TD run (Longwell kick) (CHI 34–31)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Scoring summary
Q3 – CHI – 2:35 – 51 yd TD pass from Kyle Orton to Marty Booker (Gould kick) (CHI 41–31)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Scoring summary
Q4 – CHI – 14:53 – Matt Forté 1 yd TD run (Gould kick) (CHI 48–31)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Scoring summary
Q4 – MIN – 5:54 – Ryan Longwell 23 yd FG (CHI 48–34)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 7: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Scoring summary
Q4 – MIN – 3:00 – 5 yd TD pass from Gus Frerotte to Bernard Berrian (Longwell kick) (CHI 48–41)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Detroit Lions
Coming off their bye week, the Bears stayed at home for a Week 9 NFC North rematch with the Detroit Lions. In the first quarter, Chicago drew first blood as kicker Robbie Gould got a 36-yard field goal, while QB Kyle Orton got a 5-yard TD run. In the second quarter, the Lions responded with RB Kevin Smith getting a 1-yard TD run, along with QB Dan Orlovsky completing a 17-yard TD pass to WR Calvin Johnson and a 14-yard TD pass to WR Shaun McDonald. The Bears would respond with Gould getting a 41-yard field goal, yet Detroit replied with kicker Jason Hanson getting a 52-yard field goal.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Detroit Lions
In the third quarter, Chicago began to rally as QB Rex Grossman completed a 6-yard TD pass to WR Rashied Davis. In the fourth quarter, the Bears completed their comeback as Grossman got a 1-yard TD run. The Lions tried to come back, but Chicago's defense prevented any possible rally from happening.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Detroit Lions
Kyle Orton (8/14 for 108 yards) left the game in the second quarter with a sprained right ankle.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q1 – CHI – 11:19 – Robbie Gould 36 yd FG (CHI 3–0)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q1 – CHI – 4:40 – Kyle Orton 5 yd TD run (Gould kick) (CHI 10–0)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q2 – DET – 13:25 – Kevin Smith 1 yd TD run (Jason Hanson kick blocked) (CHI 10–6)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q2 – DET – 13:14 – 17 yd TD pass from Dan Orlovsky to Calvin Johnson (Hanson kick) (DET 13–10)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q2 – DET – 6:55 – 14 yd TD pass from Dan Orlovsky to Shaun McDonald (Hanson kick) (DET 20–10)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q2 – CHI – 4:46 – Robbie Gould 41 yd FG (DET 20–13)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q2 – DET – 1:10 – Jason Hanson 52 yd FG (DET 23–13)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q3 – CHI – 7:05 – 6 yd TD pass from Rex Grossman to Rashied Davis (Gould kick) (DET 23–20)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 9: vs. Detroit Lions, Scoring summary
Q4 – CHI – 5:44 – Rex Grossman 1 yd TD run (Gould kick) (CHI 27–23)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 10: vs. Tennessee Titans
Coming off their season-sweep over the Lions, the Bears stayed at home for a Week 10 interconference duel with the unbeaten Tennessee Titans. With QB Kyle Orton nursing an almost-healed right ankle, QB Rex Grossman was given the start.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 10: vs. Tennessee Titans
In the first quarter, Chicago struck first as Grossman completed a 5-yard TD pass to rookie RB Matt Forté. In the second quarter, the Titans responded with QB Kerry Collins completing a 10-yard TD pass to TE Bo Scaife. In the third quarter, Tennessee took the lead as Collins completed a 12-yard TD pass to former Bears WR Justin Gage. In the fourth quarter, the Titans increased their lead as RB LenDale White got a 2-yard TD run. Chicago tried to rally as Grossman got a 1-yard TD run. However, Tennessee's defense stiffened for the win.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 10: vs. Tennessee Titans, Scoring summary
Q1 – CHI – 7:11 – 5 yd TD pass from Rex Grossman to Matt Forté (Robbie Gould kick) (CHI 7–0)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 10: vs. Tennessee Titans, Scoring summary
Q2 – TEN – 8:45 – 10 yd TD pass from Kerry Collins to Bo Scaife (Rob Bironas kick) (7–7)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 10: vs. Tennessee Titans, Scoring summary
Q3 – TEN – 11:34 – 12 yd TD pass from Kerry Collins to Justin Gage (Bironas kick) (TEN 14–7)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 10: vs. Tennessee Titans, Scoring summary
Q4 – TEN – 12:09 – LenDale White 2 yd TD run (Bironas kick) (TEN 21–7)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 10: vs. Tennessee Titans, Scoring summary
Q4 – CHI – 5:00 – Rex Grossman 1 yd TD run (Gould kick) (TEN 21–14)


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 11: at Green Bay Packers
Hoping to rebound from their home loss to the Titans, the Bears flew to Lambeau Field for a Week 11 NFC North duel with their hated rival, the Green Bay Packers. In the first quarter, Chicago trailed early as Packers QB Aaron Rodgers completed a 3-yard TD pass to WR Greg Jennings. In the second quarter, the Bears got on the board with kicker Robbie Gould getting a 35-yard field goal. Green Bay would answer with RB Ryan Grant getting a 4-yard TD run, along with kicker Mason Crosby getting a 53-yard field goal.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 11: at Green Bay Packers
In the third quarter, Chicago continued to trail as Rodgers completed a 5-yard TD pass to TE Donald Lee. In the fourth quarter, the Packers pulled away as Crosby made a 33-yard field goal, DE Jason Hunter returned a fumble 54 yards for a touchdown, and Crosby nailing a 45-yard field goal.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 12: at St. Louis Rams
Hoping to rebound from their embarrassing divisional road loss to the Packers, the Bears flew to the Edward Jones Dome for a Week 12 duel with the St. Louis Rams. In the first quarter, Chicago drew first blood as rookie RB Matt Forté got a 13-yard TD run, while QB Kyle Orton completed a 7-yard TD pass to FB Jason McKie. In the second quarter, the Bears continued their domination as Forté got a 47-yard TD run. The Rams would respond as kicker Josh Brown got a 43-yard field goal. Chicago would close out the half with kicker Robbie Gould getting a 43-yard field goal. In the third quarter, the Bears pulled away as Gould nailed a 38-yard field goal. From there on out, Chicago's defense kept St. Louis in check.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 13: at Minnesota Vikings
Coming off their easy road win over the Rams, the Bears flew to the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome for a Week 13 NFC North rematch with the Minnesota Vikings, with first place in the division on the line. In the first quarter, Chicago struck first as QB Kyle Orton completed a 65-yard TD pass to WR Devin Hester. In the second quarter, the Vikings responded with kicker Ryan Longwell getting a 23-yard field goal. After a Matt Forte 26-yd run got the Bears to the MIN 1, they failed on 4 attempts from the 1-yard line to get a TD. Subsequently, QB Gus Frerotte completed a 99-yard TD pass to former Bears WR Bernard Berrian on the next play, changing momentum in the Vikings favor with a 10-7 lead, and later got a 1-yard TD run for a 17-7 Vikings halftime lead.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 13: at Minnesota Vikings
In the third quarter, Chicago tried to rally as Orton completed a 2-yard TD pass to Forté, yet Minnesota answered with RB Chester Taylor getting a 21-yard TD run. In the fourth quarter, the Vikings pulled away as RB Adrian Peterson got a 1-yard TD run, while Longwell converted a 27-yard field goal.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 14: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
With a divisional road loss to the Vikings behind them, the Bears went home for a Week 14 interconference duel with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Chicago got off to a fast start in the first quarter as QB Kyle Orton completed a 2-yard TD pass to TE Desmond Clark. The Jaguars would respond with kicker Josh Scobee getting a 46-yard field goal, yet kicker Robbie Gould replied by giving the Bears a 22-yard field goal.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 14: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
Chicago would greatly increase their lead in the second quarter as Gould got a 36-yard field goal, along with Orton completing a 22-yard TD pass to TE Greg Olsen. After a scoreless third quarter, Jacksonville tried to come back in the fourth quarter, as QB David Garrard completed a 4-yard TD pass to RB Maurice Jones-Drew. Afterwards, after Gould nailed a 35-yard field goal, the Bears defense stiffened for the rest of the game.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 14: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
Rookie RB Matt Forté (21 carries for 69 yards and 5 catches for 37 yards) would surpass Gale Sayers for the most rookie scrimmage yards in franchise history with 1,476 yards.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 15: vs. New Orleans Saints
Fresh off their win over the Jaguars, the Bears stayed at home for a Week 15 Thursday night battle with the New Orleans Saints. Chicago immediately got the lead as free safety Danieal Manning returned the game's opening kickoff 83 yards for a touchdown. The Saints would respond in the second quarter with quarterback Drew Brees completing a 2-yard touchdown pass to running back Pierre Thomas, yet the Bears answered with rookie running back Matt Forté getting a 1-yard touchdown run, while quarterback Kyle Orton got a 6-yard touchdown run.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 15: vs. New Orleans Saints
New Orleans would begin to rally in the third quarter as Thomas got a 42-yard touchdown run. In the fourth quarter, the Sains took the lead as kicker Garrett Hartley made a 30-yard field goal, along with Brees completing an 11-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Marques Colston. Afterwards, Chicago replied with a game-tying 28-yard field goal from kicker Robbie Gould. In overtime, the Bears clinched the victory as Gould nailed the game-winning 35-yard field goal.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 15: vs. New Orleans Saints
With the win, Chicago kept its playoff hopes alive by improving to 8–6.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 16: vs. Green Bay Packers
Coming off their overtime win over the Saints, the Bears stayed at home for a Week 16 NFC North rematch with their hated rival, the Green Bay Packers. After a scoreless first quarter, Chicago would trail in the second quarter as Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers completed a 7-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Greg Jennings. The Bears would respond with a 31-yard field goal from kicker Robbie Gould. Green Bay would end the half with Rodgers completing a 17-yard touchdown to running back Ryan Grant.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 16: vs. Green Bay Packers
In the third quarter, Chicago would begin to rally as quarterback Kyle Orton completed a 3-yard touchdown pass to tight end Greg Olsen. The Packers would answer in the fourth quarter with kicker Mason Crosby making a 28-yard field goal. The Bears would reply with rookie running back Matt Forté getting a 3-yard touchdown run. After defensive end Alex Brown blocked a Crosby field goal attempt to force overtime, Chicago would seal the victory as Gould nailed the game-winning 38-yard field goal.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 16: vs. Green Bay Packers
With the win, the Bears kept their playoff hopes alive at 9–6.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 17: at Houston Texans
Needing a win to stay alive in the playoff picture, the Bears flew to Reliant Stadium for a crucial Week 17 interconference battle with the Houston Texans. Chicago got off to a fast first-quarter start as quarterback Kyle Orton completed a 4-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Brandon Lloyd, followed by kicker Robbie Gould's 37-yard field goal. The Texans responded in the second quarter with quarterback Matt Schaub completing a 43-yard and a 3-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Andre Johnson.


2008 Chicago Bears season, Regular season, Week 17: at Houston Texans
In the third quarter, Houston added to their lead as running back Ryan Moats got a 2-yard touchdown run. The Bears tried to rally as Orton completed a 1-yard touchdown pass to tight end Greg Olsen. However, in the fourth quarter, the Texans struck back as kicker Kris Brown nailed a 22-yard field goal, followed by running back Steve Slaton's 2-yard touchdown run. Chicago tried to come back as Orton got a 1-yard touchdown run, but Houston's defense stopped any other attempt.


2008 Chicago Cubs season
The 2008 Chicago Cubs season was the 137th season of the Chicago Cubs franchise, the 133rd in the National League and the 93rd at Wrigley Field. The season began at home on March 31 against the Milwaukee Brewers. The Cubs were champions of the National League Central Division for the second year in a row, accumulating 97 regular season wins—the most since 1945. It was the first time since 1908 that the Cubs made postseason appearances in consecutive seasons.


2008 Chicago Cubs season
At the All-Star break in July, the Cubs led the NL Central and were tied with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim for the best record in the major leagues. They tied a National League record with eight players selected to the All-Star team.


2008 Chicago Cubs season
On September 20, the Cubs clinched the NL Central championship with a 5–4 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. Despite their regular season success, the team did not advance past the first round of the playoffs; they were swept 3–0 by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Division Series.


2008 Chicago Cubs season
Lou Piniella, in his second year as the Cubs' manager, won the National League's Manager of the Year Award in 2008. In addition, catcher Geovany Soto won the 2008 National League Rookie of the Year Award.


2008 Chicago Cubs season, Regular season, Rally songs
In 2007, Ernie Banks had requested that Evanston, Illinois native Eddie Vedder write the Cubs a song, and in August 2008 Vedder recorded "All the Way", which was released on September 18, 2008. During the season, a new version of "Go, Cubs, Go" was recorded and released by the Manic Sewing Circle, although the original 1984 Steve Goodman version became the official Cubs victory song.


2008 Chicago Cubs season, Playoffs, NLDS vs. Los Angeles Dodgers
The Chicago Cubs were eliminated from the playoffs after Los Angeles won the series, 3-0.


2008 Chicago Cubs season, Playoffs, NLDS vs. Los Angeles Dodgers, Game 3, October 4
The Cubs' Game 3 loss to the Dodgers marked the franchise's ninth consecutive post-season defeat, dating back to the 2003 NLCS.


2008 Chicago Cubs season, Player stats, Batting
Note: G = Games played; AB = At Bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting Average; HR = Home Runs; RBI = Runs Batted In


2008 Chicago Cubs season, Player stats, Pitching
Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts


2008 Chicago Fire season
The 2008 Chicago Fire season was the club's 13th year of existence, as well as their 11th season in Major League Soccer and 11th consecutive year in the top-flight of American soccer. It began with a 3-1 away win over Real Salt Lake on March 29, 2008 and ended with a 2-1 loss to Columbus Crew in the Eastern Conference Final on November 13, 2008. Denis Hamlett made his debut as the Chicago Fire coach after being promoted.


2008 Chicago Fire season, Current roster, Squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2008 Chicago Fire season, Standings, Results summary
Last updated: July 21, 2009Source: Pld = Matches played; Pts = Points; W = Matches won;  T = Matches tied;  L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; GD = Goal difference


2008 Chicago Marathon
The 2008 Chicago Marathon was the 31st running of the annual marathon race in Chicago, United States and was held on October 12. The elite men's race was won by Kenya's Evans Cheruiyot in a time of 2:06:25 hours and the women's race was won by Russia's Lidiya Grigoryeva in 2:27:17.


2008 Chicago Rush season
The 2008 Chicago Rush season was the eighth season for the franchise. The Rush finished the regular season 11–5, making the playoffs again as they have in every year of their existence. They won their second consecutive Central Division title, and entered the playoffs as the top seed in the American Conference. They were eliminated from the playoffs in the Divisional round by the Grand Rapids Rampage, 41–58.


2008 Chicago Rush season, Standings
z - Clinched division and conference's best recordx - Clinched playoff berth


2008 Chicago Rush season, Final roster
Rookies in italics updated July 29, 201023 Active, 8 Inactive


2008 Chicago Shamrox season
The Chicago Shamrox were a lacrosse team based in Chicago playing in the National Lacrosse League (NLL). The 2008 season was the second and final in franchise history. The season ended up almost the same as the 2007 season, with the Shamrox 6-10 and out of the playoffs.


2008 Chicago Shamrox season, Regular season, Conference standings
x: Clinched playoff berth; c: Clinched playoff berth by crossing over to another division; y: Clinched division; z: Clinched best regular season record; GP: Games PlayedW: Wins; L: Losses; GB: Games back; PCT: Win percentage; Home: Record at Home; Road: Record on the Road; GF: Goals scored; GA: Goals allowedDifferential: Difference between goals scored and allowed; GF/GP: Average number of goals scored per game; GA/GP: Average number of goals allowed per game


2008 Chicago Shamrox season, Player stats, Runners (Top 10)
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; LB = Loose Balls; PIM = Penalty Minutes


2008 Chicago Shamrox season, Player stats, Goaltenders
Note: GP = Games Played; MIN = Minutes; W = Wins; L = Losses; GA = Goals Against; Sv% = Save Percentage; GAA = Goals Against Average


2008 Chicago Sky season
The 2008 WNBA season was the third season for the Chicago Sky. The Sky were not able to have their first winning season.


2008 Chicago Sky season, Offseason, Expansion Draft
The following player was lost in the Atlanta Dream expansion draft:


2008 Chicago White Sox season
The 2008 Chicago White Sox season was the organization's 109th season in Chicago and 108th in the American League. The White Sox won the American League Central division title for the first time since 2005. They finished the regular season tied with the Minnesota Twins (88–74) and won a one-game playoff for the division title. They subsequently lost the 2008 American League Division Series to Tampa Bay Rays.


2008 Chicago White Sox season
Individual highlights for the White Sox included the breakout season of offseason acquisition Carlos Quentin and the strong rookie season of infielder Alexei Ramírez. Gavin Floyd nearly threw a no-hitter against the Minnesota Twins on May 6, broken up by Joe Mauer's double in the ninth inning. The White Sox set a new home record at U.S. Cellular Field of 54–28 (.658 pct.) breaking the 2003 home record of 51–30 (.629 pct. ).


2008 Chicago White Sox season, Offseason
Finishing fourth in the American League Central division coupled with having both MLB's lowest batting average and on-base percentage in 2007 prompted the White Sox to make numerous transactions, particularly with West Coast teams, to improve their lineup.


2008 Chicago White Sox season, Offseason
Other players no longer with the team from the 2007 season are Alex Cintrón, Darin Erstad (signed with Houston), Andy González, Mike Myers, Heath Phillips, Scott Podsednik, and Luis Terrero.


2008 Chicago White Sox season, Offseason
Two coaching staff changes were made, with the hiring of Pittsburgh Pirates third base coach Jeff Cox and bullpen coach Juan Nieves. Cox replaces Razor Shines, while Nieves replaces Art Kusnyer.


2008 Chicago White Sox season, Regular season and post season, Season standings
The Chicago White Sox claim their second A.L Central Championship in the last four years.


2008 Chicago White Sox season, Player stats, Batting
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; AVG = Batting average; SB = Stolen bases


2008 Chicago White Sox season, Player stats, Pitching
Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts


2008 Chick-fil-A Bowl
The 2008 Chick-fil-A Bowl was a college football bowl game between the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and the Louisiana State Tigers played in Atlanta, Georgia on December 31, 2008. With sponsorship from Chick-fil-A, it was the 41st edition of the game known throughout most of its history as the Peach Bowl. Georgia Tech represented the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), and their competitor was from the Southeastern Conference (SEC). It was the final game of the 2008 football season for each team. The game payout was a combined $6.01 million, the sixth-largest among all college football bowl games and the third-largest non-BCS bowl game payout.


2008 Chick-fil-A Bowl, Selection process
Beginning with the 2006 game, the Chick-fil-A Bowl had purchased the right to select the highest-ranked Atlantic Coast Conference team after representatives from the Bowl Championship Series made their selection. According to the official selection rules still used today, the team chosen to represent the ACC must be within one conference victory of the remaining highest-ranked conference team or be ranked more than five spaces ahead of the ACC team with the best Conference record available in the final BCS Standings.


2008 Chick-fil-A Bowl, Selection process
In choosing the SEC opponent, the Chick-fil-A Bowl selection committee has the right to select the first SEC school after the Bowl Championship Series, Cotton Bowl Classic, Capital One Bowl, and Outback Bowl make their selections. Just as in the ACC, the selection committee cannot select an SEC team with two fewer losses than the highest available team. The bowl earned the right to select these teams via its multimillion-dollar payout system, which guarantees a certain amount of money to the participating conferences.


2008 Chick-fil-A Bowl, Selection process
Prior to 2006, the Chick-fil-A Bowl (then known as the Peach Bowl) matched the No. 5 team in the SEC versus the No. 3 team in the ACC. After the bowl increased its payout to $2.8 million per squad, it then was given the second pick from the ACC, with the Gator Bowl dropping to third.


2008 Chick-fil-A Bowl, Pre-game buildup
On December 3, 2008, Chick-fil-A Bowl representatives selected Georgia Tech to represent the ACC in the 2008 Chick-fil-A Bowl. Georgia Tech sold out its allotment of 17,500 tickets in less than four business days leaving the Chick-fil-a bowl with only 1,000 tickets remaining. The SEC representative for the bowl, LSU, was announced on Sunday, December 7, 2008. The Chick-fil-A bowl sold all available tickets to the game, making it the 12th consecutive sellout in the combined history of the Peach and Chick-fil-A Bowls.


2008 Chilean municipal election
A municipal election took place in Chile on October 26, 2008. The newly elected mayors and councilmen began their term on December 6, 2008.


2008 Chilean pork crisis
The Chilean Pork crisis of 2008 was Chile's first ever mediatized dioxin crisis that led to major reputational and financial losses for the country due to a number of embargoes put up by importing countries like South-Korea. The main dioxin source has contaminated zinc oxide, which had been used as an animal feed ingredient for pigs. In reaction to the crisis the Chilean government has taken measures for the future to prevent such a crisis from happening again, by adopting regulation based upon European regulations for testing and concentration limits.


2008 Chilean pork crisis, Identification of Source
The Chilean pork crisis started in June 2008, when the National Veterinary Research and Quarantine Service (NVRQS) of South-Korea found high dioxin concentrations in imported pork from Chile. After being notified by the Korean authorities, the Chilean government started an investigation to try to contain the problem and find the source of contamination. Dioxin tests performed by Canadian laboratory pinpointed the contamination to zinc oxide, which was used as an ingredient for pork feed. The zinc oxide originated from an old rural facility that distributed animal feed.


2008 Chilean pork crisis, Identification of Source
It was found that the contaminated ingredient was supplied by a metallurgic company that sold zinc oxide as a by-product from a smelting process of metal scrap. The smelting was not done under the right procedures (high enough temperature) to prevent dioxins from naturally forming. Furthermore, the ingredient sold as "zinc oxide" was not pure and was treated to obtain a whiter color, so it could be sold as pure zinc oxide on the market. Also according to Chilean legislation, the sale of this product into the animal supplement industry was an illegal activity. All the by-products of the metallurgic company that were sold as zinc oxide were in effect withheld and detained.


2008 Chilean pork crisis, Identification of Source
During the crisis eighty farms from nineteen companies were finally contaminated with dioxins. The crisis in Chile was in no way related to the 2008 Irish pork crisis of the same year. The sources in both cases were not of the same origin and thus unrelated.


2008 Chilean telethon
The 2008 Chilean telethon was the 22nd edition of the solidarity event in Chile, produced on 28 and 29 November 2008, which sought to raise funds for the rehabilitation of children with mobility problems.


2008 Chilean telethon
The event, transmitted on Chilean TV channels grouped into ANATEL, began at 2200 on 28 November at the Teatro Teletón, from which most of the event was transmitted. There were also links to subsidiary events throughout the country. As in the previous 13 years, the closing ceremony of Telethon 2008 took place at the National Stadium of Chile. This ceremony started at 2200 on the next day and took the form of a great show in which Chilean and international artists participated.


2008 Chilean telethon
The official slogan of this campaign was "Thanks to you, we can continue" and the focus was on commemorating the 30th anniversary of the first telethon, held in 1978. In this edition Catalina Aranda was chosen as the poster girl.


2008 Chilean telethon
With nearly 29 hours of uninterrupted transmission, ending at 0251 on 30 November, it became the longest version in the history of the Telethon. The final amount raised was CL$ 22,533,294,849 (approx. US$ 39 million), almost 70% above the original goal of CL$ 13,255,231,970, making it the most successful Telethon since 1994. Around $ 8,000,000,000 was collected in only 7 hours.


2008 Chilean telethon
During the campaign, Luis Haro set a new world record by playing tennis for more than 60 hours to support the cause.


2008 Chilean telethon
It was the last Telethon under the first governorship of Michelle Bachelet.


2008 Chilean telethon, Background
After the success achieved during the Telethon 2007 campaign - and after 30 years of existence - the solidarity campaign decided to mark some milestones in the new edition of 2008. Don Francisco (Mario Kreutzberger), the presenter and leader of the event, stated in May 2008 that the principal objective of the campaign would be to show the success achieved during its three decades of existence through the testimonies of health professionals, patients and their families, as well as the artists and all those who had actively participated.


2008 Chilean telethon, Background
The leaders of the Telethon Foundation stressed the importance of raising funds in this event, as it was not planned to hold the event in the following year owing to the presidential elections scheduled for December 2009. This recurring situation generates economic problems for the organisation in view of the high cost of treatments, growing demand by new disabled patients, and the planning and design of new rehabilitation centres. For this reason, the presenters pressed for increased donations to cover the following two years.


2008 Chilean telethon, Background
In October the Telethon Foundation announced two large projects that it would be bringing together during this campaign. The first would be the enlarging of the Telethon Institute in Santiago, which was in the evaluation stage with the Regional Metropolitan Government. The second would be the renovation of the Telethon Theatre, marking the bicentennial of the founding of Chile. The plans were for the construction of a new area with 1,600 seats, with space and facilities to accommodate any number of artists. In addition there would be an underground area of four floors, an event centre and a nine-storey tower.


2008 Chilean telethon, Background
The campaign would also seek to collect funds for the construction of four rehabilitation institutes in the cities of Calama, Coihaique, Copiapó and Valdivia. Although Telethon 2007 had provided a considerable sum for the construction of the Telethon Institute in Calama, various problems had delayed the project. Some days before the Telethon event the government, through the Ministry of Social Welfare, donated the land for the centres at Calama and Coihaique.


2008 Chilean telethon, The Campaign
In early June the Telethon Foundation launched a competition called "Painting the Telethon" under the patronage of the Ministry of Education and the Faculty of Arts in the University of Chile and the sponsorship of various companies. The competition sought bring the campaign closer to young children of pre-school and junior school age, entering the best work into the promotional campaign of Telethon 2008. The last day of entry was 11 July and the prize- giving was on 19 August.


2008 Chilean telethon, The Campaign
The public launch of Telethon 2008 had been scheduled for 30 May in the "Benjamín Vicuña Mackenna" school in Santiago with Don Francisco. However, the previous day, the Government of Chile announced a period of official mourning for the air accident in Panama that cost the lives of the then Director General of the Carabineros, José Alejandro Bernales, and another 10 people. Therefore the Foundation decided to cancel this event and launch the campaign privately.


2008 Chilean telethon, The Campaign
During August, when Chile was celebrating "Solidarity Month", Telethon launched an advertising campaign in various media to thank all those who had made possible the development and growth of the institution during its 30 years of existence. The campaign, named "National Pride", extended through the whole of August, delivering the message "Thanks to you" to everyone who had taken part. Members of the Telethon Institute for Children's Rehabilitation travelled Chile from north to south giving thanks to the community, the regional governments and the communications media. Starting that month, advertising spots on television broadcast the phrase "Thanks to you and all Chileans for the gift of these first 30 years of Telethon".


2008 Chilean telethon, The Campaign
The official launch of Telethon 2008 finally took place on 3 September in the Telethon Theatre. In attendance were the senior authorities of the Institution, government representatives, the communications media, artists, and various people linked to charitable work. During the event Catalina Aranda, a girl of 11, was introduced as the poster girl for the campaign. The anthem "Gracias a tí" (Eng:Thanks to you), composed by Alberto Plaza and Mario Guerrero, was sung by well-known Chilean artists. The publicity campaign that would run during the following weeks in the communications media was developed by the Prolam, Young & Rubicam Publicity Agency; the Chilean film-maker Andrés Wood also took part.


2008 Chilean telethon, The Campaign
In addition, on 5 September the programme "Telethon Ambassadors" was introduced. This initiative was organised by the Telethon Foundation and sought to make this innovative social marketing project into an inclusive project of corporate social responsibility. The event, put on in the Telethon Theatre, was attended by workers from the campaign's sponsoring companies, who were designated as official representatives of the Foundation within their companies with the goal of actively supporting the creation and development of promotional initiatives for Telethon 2008 in their workplace.


2008 Chilean telethon, Final stage
Although the solidarity campaign was officially introduced in September, after which advertisements could be seen promoting the event, the Telethon 2008 campaign was relaunched on 27 October from the Hyatt Hotel Santiago, with the presence of Don Francisco and various Chilean artists. The relaunch, which commenced immediately after the municipal elections, marked the final stage of the advertising campaign of this edition.


2008 Chilean telethon, Final stage
During that event the structure of the show, to be televised on 28 and 29 November, was made known. It would include numerous Chilean and international artists and the popular sections like "Vedetón" (Cabaret), "Bailetón" (Dance-a-thon), and "Levántate papito" (Get Up, Daddy), as well as comedy acts and a showball match organized by the Chilean ex-footballer Iván Zamorano. Within this plan a huge advertising sign would be inaugurated at midday on 28 October in part of Plaza Baquedano, a traditional meeting place in Santiago, to display the days and seconds until the event was to begin.


2008 Chilean telethon, Final stage
During November, the traditional Telethon Tour spread across the country, headed by Don Francisco and largely supported by various entertainers and artists who came along voluntarily. On the tour a number of occurrences filled the front pages of the daily papers. The inauguration of the Rehabilitation Centre in Valdivia for 2010 was announced, and in the city of Puerto Montt a woman made a karate attack by a woman on the guitarist of the group Chancho en Piedra during a song. Hours before the start of the telethon, the businessman Pedro Lizana said that "the telethon is a national disgrace, because disability is a concern of the state and is not a spectacle", similar accusations to those made by the communist leader Gladys Marín in 2002.


2008 Chilean telethon, Entertainers, Comperes
As in all previous shows, the event was presented by Don Francisco, accompanied by presenters from the different Chilean television companies transmitting the programme.


2008 Chilean telethon, Entertainers, Comperes
The presenters nominated by each station affiliated with ANATEL were:


2008 Chilean telethon, Entertainers, Comperes
Also as in previous editions five entertainers presented live from different cities:


2008 Chilean telethon, Transmission Information
The event was produced and broadcast by the television companies affiliated to ANATEL:


2008 Chilean telethon, Transmission Information
To these should be added Más Canal 22, which broadcast the first hours of the event until 01.20 and the final part from 23.00 on 29 November. Chile National Television transmitted the entire event internationally, and it could also be seen live on the official website. The simultaneous transmission was only suspended between 22.00 and 23.00 hours when each channel transmitted its own programmes and/or newscast.


2008 Chilean telethon, Financial contributions, Sponsoring companies
As in previous years all the sponsoring companies made their contribution in a single donation. The amount contributed came to CLP$ 3,243,574,119, equivalent to 24.4% of the final amount.


2008 Chilean telethon, Financial contributions, Auctions
As was done every year, the traditional auctions were arranged of objects donated to the Telethon. The results this year were:


2008 Chilean telethon, Financial contributions, Private contributions
The largest donations that day, indeed in the history of the Telethon up to then, were handed over by the businessmen Leonardo Farkas and José Luis Nazar, who each gave CLP$1,000 million (about USD$1.5 million). Both donations were in their own names, not on behalf of their businesses. Nevertheless, the mining entrepreneur (Farkas) admitted in the newspaper Las Últimas Noticias that $50 million of the $1,000 million came from the Santa Fe mining company.


2008 China Baseball League season
The 2008 China Baseball League season involves for the first time the champion of the league going to the Asia Series, instead of the all-star China Stars that were sent in previous years. For the first time in the history of the CBL, the season has been split into 2 sections. This is to accommodate the Beijing Olympics. The first half runs from April 11 to May 11, and then the season will resume on September 5 and conclude on October 12.


2008 China League One
The 2008 China League One title was won by Jiangsu Sainty.


2008 China League Two
The 2008 China League Two started on April 2008 and ended on December 2008. Guangdong Sunray Cave and Shenyang Dongjin finished top-2 and promoted to China League One 2009.


2008 China League Two, Final league tables, Northern Group
Rules for classification: 1st points; 2nd head-to-head points; 3rd head-to-head goal difference; 4th head-to-head goals scored; 5th goal difference; 6th goals scored.


2008 China League Two, Play-offs, Promotion finals, Second leg
Guangdong Sunray Cave won 4–1 on aggregate and promoted to China League One 2009.


2008 China League Two, Play-offs, Promotion finals, Second leg
Shenyang Dongjin 1–1 China Three Gorges University on aggregate. Shenyang Dongjin won 4–3 on penalties and promoted to China League One 2009.


2008 China Masters Super Series
The 2008 China Masters Super Series is the eleventh tournament of the 2008 BWF Super Series in badminton. It was held in Changzhou, China from September 23 to September 28, 2008.


2008 China Open (snooker)
The 2008 Honghe Industrial China Open was a professional ranking snooker tournament that took place between 24 and 30 March 2008 at the Beijing University Students' Gymnasium in Beijing, China. This was the penultimate ranking event of the 2007–08 season, preceding the 2008 World Snooker Championship.


2008 China Open (snooker)
The defending champion was Graeme Dott, but he lost in the first round against Barry Pinches.


2008 China Open (snooker)
Shaun Murphy and Dave Harold set two new records in the eight frame of their first round match. Murphy eventually won it after 93 minutes and 12 seconds, beating the record of the longest televised frame between Mark Selby and Marco Fu at the 2007 UK Championship and the longest frame in professional competition between Cliff Thorburn and Stephen O’Connor at the 1994 Welsh Open qualifiers, which took 77 minutes 31 seconds and 92 minutes 52 seconds respectively.


2008 China Open (snooker)
Stephen Maguire made the first maximum break in an Asian ranking tournament in the second frame of his semi-final encounter against Ryan Day.


2008 China Open (snooker)
Maguire won his fourth ranking title by defeating Murphy 10–9 in a high-quality final.


2008 China Open (snooker), Prize fund
The breakdown of prize money for this year is shown below:


2008 China Open (snooker), Qualifying
Qualifying for the tournament took place at Pontins in Prestatyn, Wales between 22 and 25 January 2008.


2008 China Open (tennis)
The 2008 China Open was a combine men's and women's tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 10th edition of the China Open for the men (the 12th for the women), and was part of the International Series of the 2008 ATP Tour, and of the Tier II Series of the 2008 WTA Tour. Both the men's and the women's events took place at the Beijing Tennis Center in Beijing, China, from 22 September through 28 September 2008.


2008 China Open (tennis)
The men's draw featured ATP No. 5, Australian Open and French Open quarterfinalist, Valencia and 's-Hertogenbosch winner David Ferrer, US Open quarterfinalist, Dubai, San Jose champion Andy Roddick, and Olympic silver medalist, Viña del Mar, Munich titlist, Beijing defending champion Fernando González. Also lined up were Stuttgart finalist Richard Gasquet, Umag winner Fernando Verdasco, Tommy Robredo, Rainer Schüttler and Sam Querrey.


2008 China Open (tennis)
The women's field featured WTA No. 2, US Open runner-up, Rome winner Jelena Janković, French Open, Indian Wells champion Ana Ivanovic, and Olympic silver medalist, French Open finalist, US Open semifinalist, Berlin, Montreal and Tokyo winner Dinara Safina. Also present were French Open semifinalist Svetlana Kuznetsova, Prague titlist Vera Zvonareva, Agnieszka Radwańska, Daniela Hantuchová, Anna Chakvetadze.


2008 China Open (tennis), Champions, Men's Doubles
Stephen Huss /  Ross Hutchins  def. Ashley Fisher /  Bobby Reynolds, 7–5, 6–4


2008 China Open (tennis), Champions, Women's Doubles
Anabel Medina Garrigues /  Caroline Wozniacki def. Han Xinyun /  Xu Yifan, 6–1, 6–3


2008 China Open Super Series
The 2008 China Open Super Series is the twelfth tournament of the 2008 BWF Super Series in badminton. It was held in Shanghai, China from November 18 to November 23, 2008.


2008 China Open – Men's Doubles
Rik de Voest and Ashley Fisher are the defending champions, but de Voest chose not to participate, and only Fisher competed that year. Fisher partnered with Bobby Reynolds, but Stephen Huss and Ross Hutchins defeated them 7–5, 6–4, in the final.


2008 China Open – Men's Singles
Fernando González was the defending champion, but lost in the quarterfinals to Björn Phau.


2008 China Open – Men's Singles
Second-seeded Andy Roddick won in the final 6–4, 6–7(6–8), 6–3, against Dudi Sela.


2008 China Open – Men's Singles, Seeds
The top four seeds receive a bye into the second round.


2008 China Open – Women's Doubles
Chuang Chia-jung and Hsieh Su-wei were the defending champions, but chose not to participate that year.


2008 China Open – Women's Doubles
Anabel Medina Garrigues and Caroline Wozniacki won in the final 6–1, 6–3, against Han Xinyun and Xu Yifan.


2008 China Open – Women's Singles
Ágnes Szávay was the defending champion, but lost in the second round to Anabel Medina Garrigues.


2008 China Open – Women's Singles
First-seeded Jelena Janković won in the final 6–3, 6–2, against Svetlana Kuznetsova.


2008 China Open – Women's Singles, Seeds
The top four seeds received a bye into the second round.


2008 Chinese Figure Skating Championships
The 2008 Chinese Figure Skating Championships (Chinese: 2007/2008年度全国花样滑冰锦标赛) were held between December 21 and 24, 2007 in Jilin City. Skaters competed in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies' singles, pair skating, and ice dancing on the senior and junior levels.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix
The 2008 Chinese Grand Prix (officially the 2008 Formula 1 Sinopec Chinese Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race held on 19 October 2008 at the Shanghai International Circuit. It was the 17th and penultimate race of the 2008 Formula One World Championship. Lewis Hamilton for the McLaren team won the 56-lap race from pole position. Ferrari driver Felipe Massa finished second, and Kimi Räikkönen was third in the other Ferrari. This was the 200th Grand Prix victory by a British driver.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix
Hamilton, the eventual Drivers' Champion, led the Championship going into the race, and started from pole position alongside Räikkönen. Second in the Drivers' Championship, Massa began from third, next to Fernando Alonso of Renault. The first three drivers retained their positions into the first corner, but Alonso was passed by Hamilton's McLaren teammate Heikki Kovalainen. Alonso, however, was able to regain the place midway through the first lap. Over the course of the race, Hamilton extended a considerable lead over the two Ferraris. Massa passed Räikkönen with seven laps remaining, to improve his chances of surpassing Hamilton's points tally at the final race in Brazil.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix
The result extended Ferrari's lead over McLaren in the Constructors' Championship from seven to 11 points. Third-placed in the Drivers' Championship, Robert Kubica's sixth place at the Grand Prix eliminated his hopes of winning the Championship, and reduced his lead over fourth-placed Räikkönen to six points. Nelson Piquet Jr. scored his last world championship points at this race.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Background
The Grand Prix was contested by 20 drivers, in ten teams of two. The teams, also known as "constructors", were Ferrari, McLaren-Mercedes, Renault, Honda, Force India, BMW Sauber, Toyota, Red Bull Racing, Williams and Toro Rosso. As is normal for a Formula One race, Bridgestone brought two different tyre compounds to the race; the softer of the two marked by a single white stripe down one of the grooves.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Background
Prior to the race, McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton led the Drivers' Championship with 84 points, and Ferrari driver Felipe Massa was second with 79 points. Behind them in the Drivers' Championship, Robert Kubica was third with 72 points in a BMW Sauber, and Massa's Ferrari teammate Kimi Räikkönen was fourth with 63 points. Kubica's teammate Nick Heidfeld was fifth with 56 points. In the Constructors' Championship, Ferrari were leading with 142 points, seven points ahead of their rivals McLaren–Mercedes, whom they had overtaken at the previous race. BMW Sauber were third with 128 points. In the battle for fourth place, Renault had 66 points, now 16 points ahead of Toyota.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Background
At the previous race in Japan, the gap between Hamilton and Massa had closed by two points. Hamilton had started from pole position ahead of Räikkönen, but had a poor start. At the first corner he braked late, and forced Räikkönen wide. He was later given a penalty, which dropped him down the field from where he was unable to recover to a points scoring position. Massa also received a penalty for a collision with Hamilton on the second lap, but was able to finish in seventh position. The British press described Hamilton's move as "impetuosity and untamed aggression", saying that the McLaren driver would have to adopt a more conservative race strategy in China. For his part, Hamilton said that he would be taking no risks:


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Background
We will approach it the same as always. We won't be taking risks, but we will be attacking as much as we can to win the race. If I'm in a position where we are looking to gain good points, and it's an unnecessary risk to make a manoeuvre, then I won't be doing that. It's always important to be fast, but it's not necessarily the fastest car that wins. Being fast is great for positioning, and maybe getting out in front, and then afterwards trying to stay calm.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Background
With ten points on offer for the winner of the Grand Prix, it was possible that Hamilton would clinch the Championship in Shanghai. Massa remained confident, saying that the race was just like any other: "You have a pressure but it is a different pressure, but you have always the pressure on your side."


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Background
Renault driver and two-time Championship winner Fernando Alonso created controversy when he said "if I can help, I will help Massa." Alonso's departure from McLaren after driving for the British team in 2007 had been acrimonious, and Alonso's dislike for the rookie Hamilton was well documented. Talking about Hamilton's penalty in Japan, Alonso said "I don't know what he did, but it's good he's punished anyway." Hamilton refused to be drawn into the controversy: "I don't particularly have an opinion on it," he said, adding that he was interested only in his own race.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Practice
Three practice sessions were held before the Sunday race—two on Friday, and a third on Saturday. The Friday morning and afternoon sessions each lasted 90 minutes. The third session was held on Saturday morning and lasted an hour. All three sessions were held on a dry track. Hamilton was fastest in the first session with a time of 1:35.630, 0.39 of a second ahead of Massa, who was next quickest. Räikkönen, Heikki Kovalainen of McLaren, Kubica, Alonso and Heidfeld rounded out the top seven. Sébastien Bourdais of Toro Rosso was eighth, having been quickest early in the session.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Practice
Renault driver Nelson Piquet drove into the gravel beside the pit-lane entry, though managed to rejoin. Hamilton was again quickest in the second session; his early time of 1:35.750 was the fastest of the afternoon. The Renaults were next quickest, ahead of Jarno Trulli of Toyota, Red Bull driver Mark Webber, Massa, Bourdais and Räikkönen. Bourdais spun off at turn two late in the session and beached his car in the gravel. Heidfeld was fastest in the final session with a time of 1:36.061, ahead of Hamilton, Kubica and Kovalainen. Massa, Räikkönen and Alonso lacked pace, and failed to make the top ten. Webber stopped late in the session when his engine failed on the back straight, requiring an engine change before qualifying. This would give him a ten-place penalty on the grid.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Qualifying
The qualifying session on Saturday afternoon was split into three parts. The first part ran for 20 minutes, and  cars that finished the session 16th or lower were eliminated from qualifying. The second part of qualifying lasted 15 minutes and eliminated cars that finished in positions 11 to 15. The final part of qualifying determined the positions from first to tenth, and decided pole position. Cars which failed to make the final session could refuel before the race, so ran lighter in those sessions. Cars which competed in the final session of qualifying were not allowed to refuel before the race, and as such carried more fuel than in the previous sessions.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Qualifying
Finally, things seemed to go right for me in qualifying. It's too late for the title, but we definitely learnt a lesson which will be useful for next year. All weekend we've struggled to find the right settings on the car, but then all the work we put in finally came good in [the third session], when the car was pretty good. Certainly, even putting aside what the choices have been in terms of fuel loads, today it would have been difficult to beat the McLaren, but I am happy with the overall result for the team.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Qualifying
Hamilton clinched his seventh pole position of the season with a time of 1:36.303. He was joined on the front row of the grid by Räikkönen, who qualified 0.342 seconds behind Hamilton's time. Massa took third place, needing a good result to retain the possibility of a Championship victory. Alonso qualified in fourth ahead of Kovalainen, who took fifth after struggling for tyre grip during the final session. Webber was sixth fastest in the final session, but was demoted to 16th on the grid as a result of his penalty.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Qualifying
Heidfeld originally qualified sixth, but was penalised three positions for impeding Red Bull driver David Coulthard in the first session. As a result, Toro Rosso driver Sebastian Vettel inherited sixth position, ahead of Trulli and Bourdais. Piquet took tenth position. Kubica's eleventh placing was his worst qualifying result to that point in the season, struggling with his car's set-up throughout his two sessions. Rubens Barrichello of Honda took 13th behind Timo Glock of Toyota, to reach the top 15 for the first time in ten races. Williams driver Nico Rosberg took 14th on the grid.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Qualifying
Coulthard failed to move beyond the first session; the Red Bull driver qualified in 15th and blamed Heidfeld for his poor performance. Kazuki Nakajima of Williams, Jenson Button of Honda and the Force Indias of Adrian Sutil and Giancarlo Fisichella would line up on the back two rows of the grid.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Race
The conditions on the grid were dry before the race. The air temperature was 27 °C (81 °F) and the track temperature was 30 °C (86 °F); weather forecasts suggested a small possibility of rain. Hamilton and Alonso began the race on harder compound tyre; both Ferraris opted for the softer compound. Hamilton accelerated faster than the Ferraris off the line, and retained his lead into the first corner. Kovalainen overtook Alonso to take fourth in the opening corners.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Race
However, Alonso pushed Kovalainen hard through the middle sector of the lap, and passed him at the turn 14 hairpin after drafting the McLaren along the back straight. At the end of the first lap, Hamilton led from Räikkönen, Massa, Alonso and Kovalainen. Heidfeld was able to move from ninth on the grid to take sixth, after Bourdais drove into the back of Trulli at the first corner. Bourdais dropped back to 18th; Trulli pitted at the next opportunity as a result of the damage and retired after the second lap.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Race
Webber was able to climb from 16th on the grid to take 12th behind Glock, and passed the Toyota on the second lap. Kubica, further up the field, improved on his grid position, moving from 11th to take eighth behind Vettel. However, Hamilton was the quickest on track, as he set new fastest laps on laps three, six and eight, to extend his lead over Räikkönen to more than four seconds. This trend continued until lap 10 when Räikkönen fought back and closed the gap. However, Hamilton extended his lead when he set the fastest lap of the race, a 1:36.325 on lap 13. In the other McLaren, Kovalainen was struggling, running two seconds a lap slower than Hamilton, and dropping back from Alonso to Heidfeld.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Race
The Red Bull of Mark Webber was the first to pit, on lap 12. Webber had passed Barrichello and Piquet in separate manoeuvres to take ninth, but his pit stop dropped him back down to 18th position. Massa and Alonso came in to pit on lap 14, from third and fourth. Kovalainen took the lead of the Grand Prix when Hamilton and Räikkönen paused their battle to take harder tyres and fuel on lap 15. By the time Kovalainen and Heidfeld had pitted on laps 17 and 18, Hamilton had established a commanding lead: 6.9 seconds over Räikkönen and 14.1 seconds over Massa. Räikkönen began to pull back Hamilton's lead over the next ten laps, before losing 1.4 seconds on lap 30.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Race
At the back of the race, Bourdais began a slow climb back up the field. The Toro Rosso driver passed Sutil (who later spun out and retired with a gearbox problem), Nakajima and Coulthard, to sit in 15th by lap 30. Rosberg fought Glock for 12th, until he passed the Toyota at the turn 14 hairpin on lap 12. Rosberg's pit stop relegated him to 18th, dropping six places. Kubica pitted late, on lap 25, dropping from third to ninth, one position outside of the points.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Race
Kovalainen suffered a puncture on lap 35. The McLaren limped around the track back to the pit lane on the disintegrating tyre, rejoining in 17th on a replacement. Alonso, Massa, Hamilton and Räikkönen all pitted for the final time over laps 36 to 38. Coming out of the second round of pit stops, Hamilton led Räikkönen by 13 seconds, Räikkönen more than 2.5 seconds ahead of Massa. The gap between the Ferraris began to close, and Massa eased past Räikkönen on the back straight on lap 49, to take second place on the track. Meanwhile, Kovalainen parked his car in the McLaren garage and retired from the race, his team not taking any chances with a problem which had developed with the engine's hydraulics.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Race
Hamilton took his fifth win of the season when he crossed the line at the end of the 56th lap, almost 15 seconds ahead of the second-placed Massa. Räikkönen took third ahead of Alonso. Heidfeld managed to jump from ninth on the grid to finish in fifth place, just ahead of his teammate Kubica, who climbed from eleventh on the grid. A one-stop pit strategy worked well for Glock as he finished seventh; Piquet took eighth. Vettel, Coulthard, Barrichello and Nakajima took the next four places; Bourdais recovered from his early contact with Trulli to take 13th. Webber's initial success with a two-stop strategy faded as he finished 14th. Rosberg took 15th, ahead of Button and Fisichella. Trulli, Sutil and Kovalainen were the three retirements from the 56 lap race.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Race, Post-race
Well, it was quite straightforward actually. I managed to get everything right on the formation lap. I was perfectly in my position and it was a great start, it was really probably one of the best we've had. I felt it was one of the best we've had this year which was needed. I got into turn one quite clear, I took it easy the first few corners then I started to bridge the gap. Fortunately we were just very, very consistent and I think every lap was faster and very, very few errors throughout the whole run, therefore I was able to create a gap and from there it was pretty smooth sailing.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Race, Post-race
The top three finishers appeared on the podium and in the subsequent press conference, where Hamilton praised his team: "they have done a phenomenal job and the car is really a dream to drive." Looking ahead to the next race in Brazil, where Hamilton would enter with a seven-point advantage, the Championship leader seemed confident: "It will be tough and [Ferrari] will be pushing us hard but hopefully as a team we can pull through." Massa admitted that McLaren had the stronger car on the day:


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Race, Post-race
For us we were completely driving on the limit trying to reduce the gap but it was not possible. I was trying to push as Kimi was trying to push to get closer to Lewis but it was not possible. So today unfortunately Lewis had the better car for the whole weekend.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Race, Post-race
Asked about his pass on Räikkönen in the closing laps, Massa said that "it was the best time for me in the race, I was quite strong and then I caught him and I passed him." Since the 2002 Austrian Grand Prix, where Barrichello ceded the lead to Michael Schumacher, team orders have been banned in Formula One. Räikkönen appeared unbothered when asked about Massa's pass: "I mean we know what we want as a team and that's what we did it. It is normal in these situations." No investigation was undertaken by the stewards at the race. GrandPrix.com played down the incident, saying "Anyone who understands racing understood what was going on and only the silly people objected."


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Race, Post-race
Kovalainen's car had apparently been fitted with mismatched tyres at the front of the car during the first stint, meaning that the tyres spun in the opposite direction to which they were designed, causing his understeer. At his first pit stop his team, not realising the cause of the problem, had adjusted his front wing to compensate for the understeer and replaced the tyres correctly. This caused further handling problems, and eventually led to his retirement.


2008 Chinese Grand Prix, Race, Post-race
Kovalainen's failure to score, combined with the two Ferraris making the top three, meant that Ferrari extended their lead over McLaren in the Constructors' Championship from seven to 11 points. Massa said Ferrari had succeeded in the race: "I think for the Drivers' Championship it was not fantastic but for the Constructors' it was very good." Kubica's sixth place at the Grand Prix ruled out any chance of claiming the Drivers' Championship. The BMW driver said his focus would now be on getting as good a result as possible in Brazil, saying "There is now one race left, and I shall try hard to defend my third place."


2008 Chinese Professional Baseball League season
The 2008 Chinese Professional Baseball League season began on March 16 when the defending champion Uni-President Lions played against the La New Bears in Tainan and concludes in October.


2008 Chinese Professional Baseball League season, Season
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2008 Chinese Professional Baseball League season, Season
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2008 Chinese Super League
The 2008 Chinese Super League (known as the Kingway 2008 Chinese Super League for sponsorship reasons) was the 5th season since the establishment of the Chinese Super League and the 15th season of the professional football league in China. Super League was expanded to 16 clubs. Shandong Luneng Taishan won their 3rd title at the end of this season.


2008 Chinese heparin adulteration
2008 Chinese heparin adulteration, refers to heparin adulteration incidents that occurred in the United States of America in 2008. Pharmaceutical company Baxter International subcontracted the creation of precursor chemicals of Heparin to Scientific Protein Laboratories, an American company with production facilities located in China. Scientific Protein Laboratories then used counterfeit precursors to create the chemicals ordered. Baxter then sold this adulterated heparin in the US, which killed 81 people, and left 785 severely injured. This caught the attention of the media and the USA Food and Drug Administration leading to numerous ongoing lawsuits.


2008 Chinese heparin adulteration, Overview
The raw material for the recalled heparin batches was processed in China from pig's intestines by the American pharmaceutical firm Scientific Protein Laboratories. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration was quoted as stating that at least 81 deaths were believed to be linked to a raw heparin ingredient imported from the People's Republic of China, and that they had also received 785 reports of serious injuries associated with the drug's use. According to The New York Times, "problems with heparin reported to the agency include difficulty breathing, nausea, vomiting, excessive sweating and rapidly falling blood pressure that in some cases led to life-threatening shock."


2008 Chinese heparin adulteration, Overview
In March 2008, due to contamination of the raw heparin stock imported from Mainland China, major recalls of heparin, a substance widely used as an injectable anticoagulant, were announced by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).


2008 Chinese heparin adulteration, Overview
Upon investigation of these adverse events by the FDA, academic institutions, and the involved pharmaceutical companies, the contaminant was identified as an "over-sulfated" derivative of chondroitin sulfate, a closely related substance obtained from mammal or fish cartilage and often used as a treatment for arthritis. Since over-sulfated chondroitin is not a naturally occurring molecule, costs a fraction of true heparin starting material, and mimics the in-vitro properties of heparin, the counterfeit was almost certainly intentional as opposed to an accidental lapse in manufacturing. The raw heparin batches were found to have been cut from 2–60% with chondroitin and motivation for the adulteration was attributed to a combination of cost savings and a shortage of suitable pigs in Mainland China.


2008 Chinese heparin adulteration, Overview
When the FDA conducted an inspection of Baxter's Chinese Heparin supplier, it found serious deficiencies at the facility which the FDA detailed in a warning letter.


2008 Chinese heparin adulteration, Overview
The Warning Letter detailed that the company failed to monitor changes in the impurity profile of incoming heparin active raw material, to adequately investigate out-of-specification results, to document actual processing steps in batch records, to validate all critical steps in the process, to qualify all suppliers, and to use valid methods to test products.


2008 Chinese heparin adulteration, Overview
The FDA has stated that it does not have the funds nor bear the responsibility to inspect on a regular basis overseas upstream processors of finished active pharmaceutical ingredients such as heparin. However, according to the internationally harmonized guideline, ICH Q7, API manufacturers are fully responsible for qualifying their suppliers through on-site audits, testing, and regular communications.


2008 Chinese milk scandal
The 2008 Chinese milk scandal was a significant food safety incident in China. The scandal involved milk and infant formula along with other food materials and components being adulterated with melamine. The chemical was used to increase the nitrogen content of diluted milk, giving it the appearance of higher protein content in order to pass quality control testing. Of an estimated 294,000 victims, 6 babies died from kidney stones and other kidney damage and an estimated 54,000 were hospitalized.


2008 Chinese milk scandal
The scandal was first exposed on 16 July, after sixteen babies in Gansu Province were diagnosed with kidney stones. The babies were fed infant formula produced by the Shijiazhuang-based Sanlu Group, then one of the leading producers of infant formula in the country. After the initial focus on Sanlu, further government inspections revealed that products from 21 other companies were also tainted, including those from Arla Foods–Mengniu, Yili, and Yashili.


2008 Chinese milk scandal
The issue raised concerns about food safety and political corruption in China and damaged the reputation of the country's food exports. The World Health Organization called the incident "deplorable" and at least 11 foreign countries halted all imports of Chinese dairy products. A number of drumhead trials were conducted by the Chinese government resulting in two executions, three sentences of life imprisonment, two 15-year prison sentences, and the firing or forced resignation of seven local government officials and the Director of the Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ).


2008 Chinese milk scandal
In late October 2008, similar adulteration with melamine was discovered in eggs and possibly other food. The source was traced to melamine being added to animal feed, despite a ban imposed in June 2007 following the scandal over pet food ingredients exported to the United States.


2008 Chinese milk scandal, Melamine
Melamine is used to manufacture melamine-formaldehyde resin, a type of plastic known for its flame-retardant properties and commonly employed in countertops, dry-erase boards, etc. Melamine itself is nitrogen-rich and is sometimes illegally added to food products to increase their apparent protein content. It has also been employed as a non-protein nitrogen, appearing in soy meal, corn gluten meal and cottonseed meal used in cattle feed. Melamine is known to cause kidney failure  and kidney stones in humans and animals when it reacts with cyanuric acid inside the body. The use of melamine in food production is not approved by WHO or national authorities.


2008 Chinese milk scandal, Melamine
The Kjeldahl and Dumas methods used to test for protein levels fail to distinguish between nitrogen in melamine and naturally occurring in amino acids, allowing the protein levels to be falsified. Introduced into milk, it can help conceal fraudulent dilution with water. Melamine adulteration of food products also made headlines when pet food was recalled in Europe and the U.S. in 2007.


2008 Chinese milk scandal, Melamine, Source of contamination
The World Health Organization (WHO) said melamine may be found "in a variety of milk and milk products at varying levels, from low ppb to ppm ranges". One academic suggested cyromazine, a melamine derivative pesticide commonly used in China for a long time, is absorbed into plants as melamine; it may therefore have long been present in products such as poultry, eggs, fish, and dairy products. It is not known where in the supply chain the melamine was added to the milk. The chemical is not water-soluble, and must be mixed with formaldehyde or another chemical before it can be dissolved in milk.


2008 Chinese milk scandal, Melamine, Source of contamination
Because of poor animal husbandry, production and storage and the demand for milk far outstripping supplies, the use of other potentially harmful chemical additives such as preservatives and hydrogen peroxide has been reported by independent media as being commonplace. Quality tests can be falsified with additives: peroxide is added to prevent milk from going bad; industrial vegetable oil is emulsified and added to boost fat levels; whey is used to increase lactose content. However, the procurement chain is also implicated, as milk agents are often politically well-connected.


2008 Chinese milk scandal, Melamine, Source of contamination
Farmers report salespeople had, for years, been visiting farms in dairy areas hawking "protein powder" additives, which would often be delivered in unmarked brown paper bags of 25 kilograms (55 lb) each. Thus, farmers either added melamine contaminant unwittingly, or turned a blind eye to milk adulteration to ensure their milk was not rejected. The big dairy producers were complicit in producing "test-tube milk".


2008 Chinese milk scandal, Melamine, Source of contamination
Caijing reported in 2008 that "spiking fresh milk with additives such as melamine" was no longer a secret to Hebei dairy farmers for the past two years. Because of fierce competition for supplies, and the higher prices paid by Mengniu and Yili, Sanlu's procurement became squeezed; its inspection system became compromised "as early as 2005 and allowed milk collection stations to adopt unscrupulous business practices", while government supervision was "practically nonexistent".


2008 Chinese milk scandal, Melamine, Source of contamination
Caijing also reported the melamine in the tainted milk may have come from scrap melamine costing ¥700 per tonne—less than one-tenth of the price of 99% pure industrial grade melamine. The melamine production process produces pure melamine by crystallisation; the melamine remaining in the mother liquor is impure (70%) and unusable for plastics, so it is scrapped. It said Sanlu's baby formula melamine content was a result of tampering by adding low-cost vegetable protein (such as low-grade soya powder), and large amounts of scrap melamine as filler. Scrap melamine contains impurities such as cyanuric acid that form more insoluble crystals (melamine cyanurate) than melamine alone, aggravating the problem.