2000 Summer Olympics national flag bearers 2000 Summer Olympics national flag bearers During the Parade of Nations portion of the 2000 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, athletes from each country participating in the Olympics paraded in the arena, preceded by their flag. The flag was borne by a sportsperson from that country chosen either by the National Olympic Committee or by the athletes themselves to represent their country. As the nation of the first modern Olympic Games, Greece entered the stadium first; whereas, the host nation of Australia marched last. Other countries entered in alphabetical order in the language of the host country (English), according with tradition
Olympic Games performance-enhancing drugs. There was a sharp increase in positive drug tests at the 2000 Summer Olympics and 2002 Winter Olympics. Several medallists in weightlifting and cross-country skiing were disqualified because of doping offences. During the 2006 Winter Olympics, only one athlete failed a drug test and had a medal revoked. The IOC-established drug testing regimen (now known as the Olympic Standard) has set the worldwide benchmark that other sporting federations attempt to emulate. During the Beijing games, 3,667 athletes were tested by the IOC under the auspices of the World Anti-Doping Agency. Both urine and blood tests were used to