Loads of debates regarding what gains Beijing Olympics sponsors will be getting out of the sponsorship have taken place in the last months. Industry specialized magazines and websites have looked at the branding opportunities offered by the Games and we wrote ourselves a few pieces on sponsors’ strategies to brand themselves with the Olympics values.

But did you know that there is one brand that spent no penny on sponsorship and received the best so far branding gains from the Games? In fact when Li Ning, ex Olympic champion and owner of the Li Ning sport brand, soared into the skies of the inauguration ceremony he did not just lit the ever burning torch but also the lights pointing at his own brand.

Indeed, Li Ning shares has seen a decisive bump on the Hong Kong stock exchange last week, jumping up to 5.6 percent reversing the trend that had seen the company's value decline by a third this year.

With over 4,000 outlets around the country and a no 3 position among the leading sport brands in the Chinese market, will this be Li Ning chance to climb ahead foreign competitors Adidas and Nike in the national market while increasing brand awareness internationally?