2006 Asian Games opening ceremony

Last updated
2006 Asian Games
opening ceremony
Part of 2006 Asian Games
Opening Ceremony of the 2006 Asian Games01.jpg
Performers at the opening ceremony
Date1 December 2006 (2006-12-01)
Time20:00 – 22:05 AST (UTC+3)
Venue Khalifa International Stadium
Location Al-Rayyan, Qatar

The 2006 Asian Games opening ceremony was held on 1 December at the multi-purpose Khalifa International Stadium. [1] The opening ceremony was described by the media to be one of the most breathtaking and technologically spectacular multi-sport event ceremonies in the history of the Asian Games (and also one of the most expensive) at that time. [2] It was created and produced by David Atkins (who had previously helmed the 2000 Summer Olympics opening ceremony in Sydney, Australia) [3] and was filmed and broadcast live by International Games Broadcast Services' (IGBS) precursor Doha Asian Games Broadcast Services (DAGBS). [4] [5] 10 composers from Qatar, Lebanon, Egypt, Singapore, Japan, India, South Korea, Germany and Australia composed the score for the ceremonies.

Contents


Proceedings

Pre-ceremonial events

Prior to the opening ceremony, Qatari youngsters spent 10 minutes creating a traditional Qatari Al Sadu carpet on the stadium floor. This was followed by youngsters from Aspire Academy, who raced around the stadium chasing Orry, the Games’ mascot to represent Qatar’s bid to make the country the sports capital of the Middle East.

Preface

The ceremony started with the arrival of Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, OCA chairman Sheikh Ahmed Al-Fahad and their wives into the stadium.

Countdown

After that, a 10-second countdown projection on the stadium floor began to signal the start of the opening ceremony. A group of 2,300 young people then used flares to form the national flag followed by a message consisting of the Arabic and English greetings "As-salamu alaykum" (Arabic : ٱلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ, "peace upon to you").

Main event

A group of children, led by Nasser Khaled Al Kubaisi, then sang Qatar's national anthem to accompany the raising of the national flag by Qatari Armed Forces personnel.

A cultural performance that told the story of the "Seeker" and his journey to Asia was presented, which began with footage that displayed an astronomical zoom from an atom to the universe, the Milky Way, the Solar System and Earth , before stopping at the games' host nation, Qatar. The main protagonist was played by local actor Adel Al Ansari. [6]

The artistic segment revolved around a man known as the "Seeker" who was born and lived in the nation of Qatar, where the people of the desert and the people of the sea lived harmoniously together. The people of the desert are experts in poetry while the people of the sea are experts in fishing for pearls named "tears of the moon". As a boy, he dreamed of following a falcon that leads him up to a tower and finds an astrolabe, an instrument used to make astronomical measurements. When the boy grew up into a young man, he left behind his family and his love before he proceeded to begin his adventure in a pearling boat, searching for pearls with a few pearl divers from his homeland, guided only by the stars and his astrolabe. One day, he encountered a fierce storm at sea that overturned the pearling boats of the pearl divers that followed him, causing most of them to get lost and never return to their families. He later encountered a terrifying and colossal half-human half-amphibian sea jinn named Abu Darya (meaning in Arabic "Lord of the Sea"), who threatened to destroy his ship and devour him. [7] Fortunately, he was rescued by a giant falcon who defeated the jinn, landing him on safe ground where he continued his path to Asia and discovered its colourful history and cultures. [8] The Angkor Wat, the Taj Mahal, the Temple of Heaven and Borobudur were among the important landmarks he passed. The Seeker was also treated to a multicultural presentation that displayed the cultures of different Asian countries such as China, Japan, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan and Thailand. Many people in the continent came to greet him, sending him gifts such as gold, silk, spices and incense. Meanwhile, back at the Seeker’s homeland, his love was in despair, waiting for his arrival. With his Asian brothers helping him in his way back to his homeland, the Seeker safely made it back to his love, and invited all of Asia to celebrate their wedding as guests. To honour his guests, the Seeker presented them a troupe of horsemen that put on a special performance. Years later, the Seeker had a son. He showed him the Arab world's contributions to modern science in the past, the present and the future, Qatar's natural resources and the country’s vision for the future.

Delegates from Host Qatar enters the stadium. 2006 Asian Games - 4.jpg
Delegates from Host Qatar enters the stadium.

Delegates from the 45 countries and regions of Asia entered the stadium after Hong Kong artist Jacky Cheung sang "Together Now". As host nation, Qatar enters the stadium last. For the fifth time after the 2000 Summer Olympics, 2002 Asian Games, 2004 Summer Olympics, and the 2006 Winter Olympics, North Korea and South Korea jointly entered the stadium under Korean Unification Flag. Once all the delegates gathered inside the stadium, India's Bollywood star Sunidhi Chauhan sang "Reach Out" written by award winning songwriters Paul Begaud and Vanessa Corish. [9] Hundreds of performers brought out dove sculptures and formed the word "peace." Then, the games' organising committee chairman Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Olympic Council of Asia chairman Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah gave their respective speeches and Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani declared the games open. Qatar’s armed forces personnel later raised the flag of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), the games' governing body which was brought in by representatives of Reach Out To Asia (ROTA), a Qatari charity organisation. The flag bore the old logo of the Olympic Council of Asia, which was replaced by a new and current version the following day at the Flag Square of the Asian Games Athletes village. [10] Mubarak Eid Belal (a Qatari volleyball player) took the athletes' oath, while Abdullah Al Balushi (a Qatari football referee) took the judges' oath.

Majida El Roumi performing "Light The Way" with Jose Carreras during the opening ceremony Majida El Roumi performing "Light The Way" with Jose Carreras.jpg
Majida El Roumi performing "Light The Way" with José Carreras during the opening ceremony
Fireworks display at the opening ceremony outside the stadium Asian Games Doha 2006 fireworks.jpg
Fireworks display at the opening ceremony outside the stadium

Before the torch relay section, Lebanon's Majida El Roumi and Spanish tenor José Carreras performed "Light the Way". The torch was relayed into the stadium by bowler Salem Bu Sharbak, volleyball player Mubarak Mustafa, shooter Nasser Al-Atiyya, Mohamed Suleiman, footballer Mansoor Muftah Sheikh and Talal Mansour. Mohammed Bin Hamad Al-Thani, son of the emir and captain of the Qatar equestrian endurance team, rode his horse up the stairs to the top of the stadium to light up the giant cauldron that took the form of a giant astrolabe. The flame was transferred electronically to the Aspire Tower just outside the stadium, and fireworks soon went off, signalling the start of the 2006 Asian Games. The horse nearly slipped in the process and a clip of this incident made it onto the official broadcast. [11] [12] [13]

Parade of Nations

Athletes of the 2006 Asian Games. 2006 Asian Games athletes during opening ceremony.jpg
Athletes of the 2006 Asian Games.

All 45 contingents participated in the parade in English alphabetical order, from Afghanistan to Yemen, with host Qatar marching last. The traditional music of several Asian regions accompanied the athletes as they marched into the stadium. [14]

Whilst most countries entered under their short names, a few entered under alternative names, sometimes due to political disputes. Taiwan (Republic of China) entered with the compromised name and flag of "Chinese Taipei" under T so that they did not enter together with conflicting "China", which entered under C.

North Korea and South Korea marched together under the Korean Unification Flag, but competed separately.

While the placards were displayed only in English, the participating countries were announced in English and Arabic.

OrderNationPlacard NameFlag bearerSport
1Flag of Afghanistan (2004-2021).svg  Afghanistan  (AFG)Afghanistan
2Flag of Bahrain.svg  Bahrain  (BRN)Kingdom of Bahrain Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa Equestrian
3Flag of Bangladesh.svg  Bangladesh  (BAN)BangladeshShajahan Ali Shajahan Md
4Flag of Bhutan.svg  Bhutan  (BHU)Bhutan
5Flag of Brunei.svg  Brunei  (BRU)Brunei DarussalamHJ Mustafa Md Shawal
6Flag of Cambodia.svg  Cambodia  (CAM)Cambodia
7Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg  China  (CHN)People's Republic of China Bao Chunlai [15] Badminton
8Flag of Hong Kong.svg  Hong Kong  (HKG)Hong Kong, China
9Flag of India.svg  India  (IND)India Jyoti Sunita Kullu [16] [17] Hockey
10Flag of Indonesia.svg  Indonesia  (INA)Indonesia Andy Ardiyansah Beach volleyball
11Flag of Iran.svg  Iran  (IRI)Islamic Republic of Iran Hossein Rezazadeh [18] Weightlifting
12Flag of Iraq (2004-2008).svg  Iraq  (IRQ)IraqAli Salman Wrestling
13Flag of Japan.svg  Japan  (JPN)Japan Saori Yoshida [19] Wrestling
14Flag of Jordan.svg  Jordan  (JOR)Jordan Nadin Dawani Taekwondo
15Flag of Kazakhstan.svg  Kazakhstan  (KAZ)Kazakhstan Bakhtiyar Artayev Boxing
16Unification flag of Korea.svg North Korea (PRK)Korea Ri Kum-suk Football
17Unification flag of Korea.svg South Korea (KOR) Lee Kyu-sup Basketball
18Flag of Kuwait.svg  Kuwait  (KUW)Kuwait
19Flag of Kyrgyzstan (1992-2023).svg  Kyrgyzstan  (KGZ)Kyrgyzstan
20Flag of Laos.svg  Laos  (LAO)Lao People's Democratic Republic
21Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon  (LIB)LebanonAlain Saade Volleyball
22Flag of Macau.svg  Macau  (MAC)Macau, ChinaHan Jing [20] Wushu
23Flag of Malaysia.svg  Malaysia  (MAS)Malaysia Josiah Ng [21] Cycling
24Flag of Maldives.svg  Maldives  (MDV)Maldives
25Flag of Mongolia.svg  Mongolia  (MGL)Mongolia Khashbaataryn Tsagaanbaatar Judo
26Flag of Myanmar (1974-2010).svg  Myanmar  (MYA)Myanmar
27Flag of Nepal.svg  Nepal  (NEP)Nepal
28Flag of Oman.svg  Oman  (OMA)Sultanate of Oman
29Flag of Pakistan.svg  Pakistan  (PAK)Pakistan Shujauddin Malik [22] Weightlifting
30Flag of Palestine.svg  Palestine  (PLE)PalestineAbu Hawelah Rami [23] Taekwondo
31Flag of the Philippines.svg  Philippines  (PHI)Philippines Paeng Nepomuceno [24] Bowling
32Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia  (KSA)Kingdom of Saudi ArabiaAlharkan Fahad Abdullah [25]
33Flag of Singapore.svg  Singapore  (SIN)SingaporeRoy Tay Junhao [26] Sailing
34Flag of Sri Lanka.svg  Sri Lanka  (SRI)Sri Lanka Manjula Kumara [27] Athletics
35Flag of Syria.svg  Syria  (SYR)Syrian Arab Republic Ahed Joughili [28] Weightlifting
36Flag of Chinese Taipei for Olympic games.svg  Chinese Taipei  (TPE)Chinese Taipei
37Flag of Tajikistan.svg  Tajikistan  (TJK)Tajikistan Sherali Dostiev [29] Boxing
38Flag of Thailand.svg  Thailand  (THA)ThailandSupachai Jitjumroon Volleyball
39Flag of East Timor.svg  East Timor  (TLS)Timor-Leste
40Flag of Turkmenistan.svg  Turkmenistan  (TKM)Turkmenistan
41Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates  (UAE)United Arab Emirates Maitha Al-Maktoum Karate
42Flag of Uzbekistan.svg  Uzbekistan  (UZB)Uzbekistan Utkirbek Haydarov Boxing
43Flag of Vietnam.svg  Vietnam  (VIE)VietnamTrong Cuong Nguyen Taekwondo
44Flag of Yemen.svg  Yemen  (YEM)Republic of YemenAnas Aqlan Taekwondo
45Flag of Qatar.svg  Qatar  (QAT)State of QatarAhmed Saad Al Saad Handball

Notes

Notable guests

Qataris

Foreign dignitaries

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References

  1. ↑ "Doha's Grand Games". Char Simons. Saudi Aramco World. April 2007.
  2. ↑ "Media fascinated by high-tech at Doha Asiad opening ceremony". English.people.com.cn. 2006-12-02. Retrieved 2011-05-02.
  3. ↑ "PIGI projection makes dazzling opening ceremony in Doha Asian Games". NEWSGD.com. 2006-12-12. Retrieved 2010-07-08.
  4. ↑ "15th Asian Games Doha 2006". Archived from the original on 2019-02-19. Retrieved 2019-02-19.
  5. ↑ "DOHA Asian Games Broadcast Services". 2007-01-05. Archived from the original on 2007-01-05. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
  6. ↑ "People in Film: Adel Al Ansari". Doha film institute.
  7. ↑ "Opening ceremony Abu Darya".
  8. ↑ "The 15th Asian games opening ceremony kicks off". Government Committee for coordinating conferences and events.
  9. ↑ "DAGOC Announces Stars for Doha 2006 Opening Ceremony". 18 November 2006.
  10. ↑ "OCA Brand Image Logo Launch 02-12-2006". ocasia.org. 2 December 2006. Archived from the original on 2007-10-06.
  11. ↑ "Daredevil horse stunt clip goes international". Archived from the original on 2006-12-05. Retrieved 2006-12-08.
  12. ↑ "Sunidhi, Jacky and Carreras to sing at opening ceremony". The Star. 20 November 2006.
  13. ↑ "DAGOC Announces Stars for Doha 2006 Opening Ceremony". Arab news. 18 November 2006.
  14. ↑ "Asian Games Opening Ceremony 2006". Archived from the original on 2021-12-13.
  15. ↑ China's flag bearer? Yao is a big favorite
  16. ↑ "Kullu overwhelmed at being flag-bearer - 'This is compensation for Arjuna which I was denied'".
  17. ↑ "Qatar delivers dazzling Asiad opening". Rediff. 2 December 2006.
  18. ↑ "A magnificent spectacle". DAGOC. 1 December 2006. Archived from the original on 6 January 2007.
  19. ↑ "Getty Images Doha Asian Games Opening ceremony".
  20. ↑ Han Jing
  21. ↑ Josiah Ng
  22. ↑ Shujauddin Malik
  23. ↑ Opening ceremony Abu Hawelah
  24. ↑ "Philippines chooses official flag-bearer in Asian Games".
  25. ↑ Opening cereemony Alharkan Fahad Abdullah
  26. ↑ Sailor TAY Chosen as Singapore Flag Bearer
  27. ↑ Opening ceremony Manjula Kumara
  28. ↑ Opening ceremony Ahed Joughili
  29. ↑ Opening ceremony Sherali Dostiyev
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