Beijing Great Wheel Beijing Great Wheel The Beijing Great Wheel, () a tall giant Ferris wheel, was to have been constructed in eastern Beijing's Chaoyang Park, one of the 2008 Summer Olympics venues. If it had been built, it would have become the world's tallest Ferris wheel, superseding the Singapore Flyer (world's tallest 2008-2014). The Great Wheel Corporation originally forecast the wheel would start turning on August 1, 2008, one week in advance of the Beijing-hosted 2008 Summer Olympics. In 2007, Chinese state media reported that construction had begun, with completion delayed until 2009 due to design issues. Completion was subsequently rescheduled for
Ferris wheel wheels are marketed as observation wheels, any distinction between the two names being at the discretion of the operator, however the wheels whose operators reject the term Ferris wheel are often those having most in common with the original 1893 Chicago Ferris Wheel, especially in terms of scale and being an iconic landmark for a city or event. Wheels with passenger cars mounted external to the rim and independently rotated by electric motors, as opposed to wheels with cars suspended from the rim and kept upright by gravity, are those most commonly referred to as observation wheels, and their cars