By Dr. Terry Schroeder, Westlake Village resident and head coach of the U.S. Olympic Men's Water Polo Team, which trained for several months in Westlake Village and Thousand Oaks.

It has been 16 years since I last marched into a stadium for opening ceremonies at the Olympic Games.

After meeting with President Bush and then waiting for a few hours, the team was anxious to get into the stadium. I had showed them my video from the 1984 Olympic Games when our team strategically placed ourselves close to Michael Jordan as we marched in.

We had some good face time back then and the strategy was the same for these games. Stick together but stay close to the basketball guys - especially Kobe.

OK - what can I say, water polo needs all the exposure it can get.

The USA was number 140 out of the 204 countries that marched last night. As the parade of athletes began, we slowly made our way through a long line toward the Bird's Nest.

On both sides were droves of fans that either could not get into the stadium or were volunteers who were there to help keep control of the fans.

Being close to Kobe was interesting. The Chinese people went crazy whenever they saw him. Some rushed the volunteers and stormed close to Kobe screaming "I love you, I love you" (this was a male fan).

At that moment, I was right next to Kobe so I boxed out the crazed fan and earned some respect as a body guard from Kobe. He seemed to appreciate my help and opened up a little telling me how crazy this was.

I told him that I thought his earring was attracting all the attention (he was wearing a huge diamond-stud earring) and he laughed and began to take it out and said, "here you go then, you keep it."

That was a fun moment, but what was interesting and kind of strange was that there were many more "Kobe! Kobe! Kobe!" chants than there were "USA! USA!" chants.

I tried to start a "Tony! Tony!" chant, but it did not get too far.

As we finally approached the tunnel, my heart began to race. The memories from my previous Olympic Games and especially opening ceremonies began to race through my mind. As we came out of the tunnel, one of the first things that I saw was a family waving an American flag.

The cheers from the crowd did not rival the powerful "USA! USA!" chant that went on for 15 to 20 minutes when we came into the coliseum in Los Angeles for the '84 Games.

However, I would say that the Chinese people gave us a very warm welcome. I should say "hot" (I'll explain in a minute).

It was great to see so many American flags throughout the stadium as we marched around. Looking around at our guys, I know that they were really enjoying the moment - something that we will all remember for the rest of our lives.

We came to the middle of the stadium and lined up as the remaining 60 countries marched in. It took a few minutes to realize just how hot it was on the stadium floor.

Jackets came off and shirts were soaked through in a matter of minutes. Everyone was sweating like they were in a sauna. Regardless, no one complained.

Lots of photos were taken and we shared some nice moments as a team. We watched in awe as the Olympic flag was raised and then it was time for the torch to enter the stadium.

The lighting of the torch has and always will be one of my greatest Olympic memories.

In 1984, when Rafer Johnson lit the torch, it was like a flame was ignited inside my body. I knew at that moment that my dream had come true. I had made the Olympic team and now I was going to get my chance to win a gold medal for my country.

The torch lighting last night was just as exciting for me. I did not know the final athletes who ran with the flame, but it did not matter. The Olympic flame means a great deal for me. I guess it represents for me that burning desire to be the best, to compete against the best and more importantly to see how far you can go as a man or a woman.

By the time the torch was lit, I think I was standing in a puddle of sweat but it was a very cool moment. I had goose bumps as I watched the final runner moon-walk around the upper edge of the stadium. I was ready to jump back in the pool and play after the Olympic flame was ignited.

All I know is that I am very blessed to have this opportunity with this team. It has already been a great experience and it is just going to get better.

It was a great night and the team enjoyed the ceremonies. We finally hit the sack around 2 a.m., so I am glad that we have a day to recover and prepare for the Chinese team on Sunday.

See you at the pool!

Coach

Wayne Bean is a local supporter of the U.S. Men's Water Polo Team and has been posting blog entries for Coach Schroeder while he is in Beijing.