Hangzhou stepped up security ahead of yesterday’s opening of the Asian Games in China, as organizers sought to get the sporting extravaganza off to a smooth start, with Chinese President Xi Jinping among the dignitaries in attendance.
Roads in a sizeable “traffic control area” around the city’s Olympic stadium were blocked off, at least one metro station was shut and other Games centers were closed ahead of a ceremony organizers described as “mesmerizing.”
Some of those making the trek toward the main stadium were left frustrated by the size of the sealed-off area.
Photo: AP
“I think it shows they’re too nervous, right?” said 45-year-old Hangzhou resident Li Jian. “I think we should be a little more confident.”
Organizers have not disclosed spending on the Games, although the Hangzhou government has said it spent more than 200 billion yuan (US$30 billion) in the five years through 2020 on transport infrastructure, stadiums, accommodation and other facilities.
Delayed a year due to China’s measures to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, the quadrennial Games are the country’s biggest sporting event in more than a decade, with more than 12,000 athletes from 45 nations competing in 40 sports.
Photo: AFP
Organizers hoped the high-tech opening ceremony would help drum up excitement for the Games. Interest at home has been muted as the economy sputters and some question the cost of hosting the event.
“We will transport the beauty of mountains and rivers directly onto the stage, using the mesmerizing combination of naked-eye 3D visual effects and virtual imagery,” Sha Xiaolan, chief director for the ceremony, told a news conference on Thursday, state media reported.
Dozens of smiling volunteers greeted arriving journalists in Hangzhou this week, with some expressing relief that the event was finally getting started.
The official slogan of the event, “Heart to Heart, @Future,” represents the goal of uniting the people and countries of Asia through these Games, officials have said, but geopolitical tensions and rivalries threatened to overshadow that effort this week.
India on Friday protested a visa issue that affected three of its athletes at the Games, leading Indian Minister of Sports Anurag Thakur to cancel his trip.
Japan’s top government spokesperson said on Tuesday that Tokyo would do its utmost to ensure the safety of Japanese nationals in China as the release of treated water from the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant into the sea has chilled ties.
“We should promote peace through sports, adhere to the principle of goodwill towards neighbours and mutual benefit and ... resist the cold war mentality and confrontation between camps,” Xi told dignitaries including International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach at a banquet yesterday, state news agency Xinhua reported.
A few sports had started before the opening ceremony, including table tennis. Taiwan’s men’s team on Friday played Kazakhstan in their second tie in their group.
Taiwan won 3-0 to advance to the knockout round with two victories.
Additional reporting by staff writer
BASEBALL LEGEND: Sadaharu Oh, who flew against his doctor’s advice to throw the first pitch at the Taipei Dome, said he had high expectations for baseball in Taiwan Taiwan yesterday defeated South Korea 4-0 in the opening game of the Asian Baseball Championship in front of a crowd of more than 16,000 at the newly opened Taipei Dome. The team was led by a starting pitcher Hsu Ruo-hsi, who in a dominant performance recroded 10 strikeouts and allowed only two hits in seven scoreless innings on the mound. Eighteen-year-old Sun I-lei came to close out the final two innings, ensuring that Taiwan hung on to their four-run lead, after scoring three runs in the third inning and another in the fourth. The eight-day championship is to take place
NIGHT OF FIRSTS: In the first official game at the Tapei Dome on Sunday, not only did Taiwan notch a win over South Korea, they also recorded the stadium’s first hit and RBI The Philippines yesterday dominated Thailand 14-4 at the Taipei Dome in the opening game of Group B on the second day of the Asian Baseball Championship, while Palestine pipped Hong Kong 3-1 in Taichung in Group A. World No. 35 the Philippines put themselves on the board early, racking up two runs in the first inning, followed by two in the third, one each in the fourth and fifth, and three in the sixth. Thailand, ranked 43rd in the world, did not get on the board until the top of the seventh inning, when they tried to stage a comeback, putting up
TROUNCED: Taiwan beat Palestine in six innnings on day three of the Asia Baseball Championship, while it took just five innings for Japan to defeat Thailand Taiwan yesterday beat Palestine 19-0 at the Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium on the third day of the Asian Baseball Championship. The Group A game was over in six innings after a 6:03pm start. Taiwan went on the offensive from the first inning, scoring three runs, but the real damage was done in the third inning, when they scored seven. The Palestine players are all studying or working in the US. In another duel between two unevenly matched teams, Japan thrashed Thailand 16-0 in their late Group B game at the Taipei Dome. They won in five innings thanks to the mercy rule, which states
NATIONS LEAGUE: England crushed Scotland 6-0, but their Olympic hopes were ruined when the Netherlands beat them on goal difference with a 4-0 win against Belgium Germany and the Netherlands on Tuesday booked their places at the UEFA Women’s Nations League finals , where they are also to fight for spots at next year’s Paris Games, but there was heartbreak for England whose hopes of competing in the Olympics were dashed, despite beating Scotland 6-0. Germany drew 0-0 in Wales, but secured their passage thanks to Iceland’s 1-0 win over Denmark. The Netherlands needed a 95th-minute goal from Damaris Egurrola to see them to a 4-0 win over Belgium which meant they edged England on goal difference in Group A1 after the FIFA Women’s World Cup runners-up hammered