The 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing came to an end Sunday, and they've been anything but dull. From controversy surrounding the Chinese female gymnasts to world record times being shattered, these Olympic Games have created memories for everyone.

The Games got off to a rocky start with a gymnastics controversy. The age for competition is 16, and some Chinese female gymnasts were accused of being underage, making them illegal. Allegedly, the girls are only 14, and their appearance sure doesn't help their case.

Every country protested as the Chinese girls took the gold in the team event. Olympic officials are still investigating these accusations even though the games are over. Hopefully, the committee can come to an agreement and find the truth of this matter.

With all of this as well as tremendous pressure on them to perform well, the U.S. women did everything in their power to perform at a gold medal standard. Shawn Johnson and Nastia Liukin proved to the world that they were just as good as their Chinese competitors and outshined many other gymnasts, winning several individual medals.

Unfortunately, in the team competition, the women finished in second, receiving the silver. Johnson and Liukin's fellow team member Alicia Sacramone just wasn't having the night she had hoped for. Losing her balance and falling off the balance beam and then missing a tumbling pass, she just wasn't on her game.

Moving to the pool, the most talked-about person at the Olympics came in the form of U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps. This 23-year-old from Baltimore swam like a fish, captivating audiences around the globe. Every night, millions would turn to their TV sets just to watch this man perform - and he didn't disappoint.

Phelps brought home eight gold medals for Team USA, breaking seven world records and one Olympic record in the process. His phenomenal performance earned him the distinctions of being the athlete to win the most gold medals of all time and the first to win eight gold medals in a single Olympics.

Though he's not from the U.S., another noteworthy Olympian is Usain Bolt. His last name perfectly describes him because he runs like a bolt of lightning. He broke several records - most impressively the 100 meter dash, which he ran in 9.69 seconds. His home country of Jamaica must be very proud.

On the beach, the U.S. dominated in both men's and women's beach volleyball with both teams taking home the gold. On the men's side, Todd Rogers and Phil Dalhausser really made a great pair. They weren't ranked number one, but they surprised the world and defeated the Brazilian team.

The women's duo of Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh were unstoppable. They became the first ever duo to win back-to-back gold medals in Olympic beach volleyball. Through the use of hand signals and powerful spikes, they came to the games, saw their competition and conquered them all.

The U.S. also took a pair of golds with men's and women's basketball. The men's team was unstoppable, proving this fact to the world from their starting game against Greece. It was almost the same way with the women's team. In their gold medal match versus Australia, there was never any doubt that the women might lose.

After the loss of Abby Wambach, many soccer fans thought that the women's soccer "dream team" was forever lost. However, they were so wrong.

Persevering through ups and downs, the women made their way to the gold medal match. The final game was nail biting, as it slowly rolled into overtime. With one of the women scoring quickly, the women held on and brought home the "Big V."

All in all, the Olympics were very exciting and worth staying up late into the night to see. The U.S. had its ups and downs, from Phelps' phenomenal swimming to some awful disqualifications in track, but in the end, we emerged the leader in medals with 110. The Chinese may have won more gold medals, but with 36 gold, 38 silver and 36 bronze medals, the U.S. really showed just how much this great nation has to offer when it comes to sports.

The 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing came to an end Sunday, and they've been anything but dull. From controversy surrounding the Chinese female gymnasts to world record times being shattered, these Olympic Games have created memories for everyone.

The Games got off to a rocky start with a gymnastics controversy. The age for competition is 16, and some Chinese female gymnasts were accused of being underage, making them illegal. Allegedly, the girls are only 14, and their appearance sure doesn't help their case.

Every country protested as the Chinese girls took the gold in the team event. Olympic officials are still investigating these accusations even though the games are over. Hopefully, the committee can come to an agreement and find the truth of this matter.

With all of this as well as tremendous pressure on them to perform well, the U.S. women did everything in their power to perform at a gold medal standard. Shawn Johnson and Nastia Liukin proved to the world that they were just as good as their Chinese competitors and outshined many other gymnasts, winning several individual medals.

Unfortunately, in the team competition, the women finished in second, receiving the silver. Johnson and Liukin's fellow team member Alicia Sacramone just wasn't having the night she had hoped for. Losing her balance and falling off the balance beam and then missing a tumbling pass, she just wasn't on her game.

Moving to the pool, the most talked-about person at the Olympics came in the form of U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps. This 23-year-old from Baltimore swam like a fish, captivating audiences around the globe. Every night, millions would turn to their TV sets just to watch this man perform - and he didn't disappoint.

Phelps brought home eight gold medals for Team USA, breaking seven world records and one Olympic record in the process. His phenomenal performance earned him the distinctions of being the athlete to win the most gold medals of all time and the first to win eight gold medals in a single Olympics.

Though he's not from the U.S., another noteworthy Olympian is Usain Bolt. His last name perfectly describes him because he runs like a bolt of lightning. He broke several records - most impressively the 100 meter dash, which he ran in 9.69 seconds. His home country of Jamaica must be very proud.

On the beach, the U.S. dominated in both men's and women's beach volleyball with both teams taking home the gold. On the men's side, Todd Rogers and Phil Dalhausser really made a great pair. They weren't ranked number one, but they surprised the world and defeated the Brazilian team.

The women's duo of Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh were unstoppable. They became the first ever duo to win back-to-back gold medals in Olympic beach volleyball. Through the use of hand signals and powerful spikes, they came to the games, saw their competition and conquered them all.

The U.S. also took a pair of golds with men's and women's basketball. The men's team was unstoppable, proving this fact to the world from their starting game against Greece. It was almost the same way with the women's team. In their gold medal match versus Australia, there was never any doubt that the women might lose.

After the loss of Abby Wambach, many soccer fans thought that the women's soccer "dream team" was forever lost. However, they were so wrong.

Persevering through ups and downs, the women made their way to the gold medal match. The final game was nail biting, as it slowly rolled into overtime. With one of the women scoring quickly, the women held on and brought home the "Big V."

All in all, the Olympics were very exciting and worth staying up late into the night to see. The U.S. had its ups and downs, from Phelps' phenomenal swimming to some awful disqualifications in track, but in the end, we emerged the leader in medals with 110. The Chinese may have won more gold medals, but with 36 gold, 38 silver and 36 bronze medals, the U.S. really showed just how much this great nation has to offer when it comes to sports.