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When Spain's Samuel Sanchez stood before the world's media as an Olympic champion road cyclist, his reaction was that of an awestruck tourist.
He could not believe this was happening to him and so he did what any decent tourist would: he held a camera aloft with one arm and shot a picture of himself with the journalists in the background.
For Spanish sport, the photograph captured a moment in history. Not only was it the first time one of their riders had won a medal in the prestigious road race, it was also confirmation that Spain had arrived as a world sporting superpower.
The 30-year-old's victorious 245km ride from central Beijing to the outskirts of the capital up through steep hills and alongside the Great Wall of China was a metaphor for Spain's grinding climb from Europe's sporting also-rans to the front of the pack.
Pick a Spanish sportsman of the year from this line-up: Sanchez; Tour de France winner Carlos Sastre; soon-to-be world tennis No 1 Rafael Nadal; the Euro 2008 champion soccer team; triathlon world champion and world No 1 Javier Gomez; Giro d'Italia winner Alberto Contador; and basketballer Pau Gasol, who appeared in the NBA finals with the Los Angeles Lakers.
With his gold medal proudly around his neck after his win on Saturday over Italian rival Davide Rebellini and Switzerland's Fabian Cancellara, Sanchez observed: "I think it would be fair to say Spain is really going through something of a golden era of sport. I think sport in Spain is very much up there at the top."
Not that long ago Spain was the poor cousin of European sport. Things were so bad, and have improved so much, Nike was bold enough to adopt a fresh slogan for one of its advertising campaigns: "Being Spanish is no longer an excuse, it's a responsibility," read billboards at Madrid's metro train stations.
Sanchez acknowledged that his country's rise was partly a result of extra Government funding. "We're seeing a very good generation of athletes coming through and we're also doing this because of Government support of sport in general. The athletes themselves have been working very hard as well."
The investment in sport which began with the 1992 Olympic Games is paying dividends. Sports clubs and facilities have increased dramatically and the state has created dozens of institutes for elite young athletes to train and compete.
But there are also wider reasons. Sociologist David Moscoso, of the Institute for Advanced Social Studies, says changing social attitudes have helped sport flourish.
"Until recently, sports weren't important in Spain," he told Time magazine recently. "They really only existed in private schools - they were for the elite."
With democracy, sports moved into the public schools and became something for everyone. "Now, it's impossible to consider Spanish society without sports."
In Athens, Spain won three gold medals in a total of 19. Sanchez hopes his achievement on the first day in Beijing will inspire even more.
"I think that Spain performed as a real team," he said. "I hope my gold medal serves as a fire [under the team] and opens the door for many more."
