"I wasn't exactly sure what to say to you, except to start with, God, I love our country and I love what we stand for," Bush said. "And I love being with you."

Bush said that the people of the United States appreciate the hard work the athletes put in to get to Beijing.

"Laura and I and a lot of our family are here to cheer you on," he said. "We're just a handful of a lot of folks who care about you a lot. There are going to be a lot of people pulling for you. We want you to win as many golds as you possibly can."

The Bush contingent includes the president's father, former President George H.W. Bush' title='George H.W. Bush' class='tpstyle'>George H.W. Bush, who once served as ambassador to China, one of his daughters and two of his siblings.

The United States is fielding a team of 600, including celebrity athletes like the NBA stars on the basketball team and swimmer Michael Phelps, as well as contenders whose names are not widely known in sports like archery.