-Trisha Ghosal from the Opening Ceremony.
Hangzhou is all about scale. Everything here is gigantic and humungous. And from what we have seen of the Opening Ceremony so far, it promises to be one of scale. In this huge stadium where I am at the moment, multiple different acts are on at the same time. The four corners of the ground are divided into mini grounds by themselves with four different sets of performers performing at the same time. Each is reflective of Chinese culture and tradition and the display of colours are dazzling to say the least. At the end of each act, there is a kind of comic relief as well. The performers are all jumping on each other in celebration and there is an informality to it all, which is refreshing.
As it gets dark and cold, the temperature inside the ground has started to rise. While the ceremony is just about starting, we are all waiting for Harmanpreet Singh and Lovlina Borgohain to lead the biggest ever Indian contingent in.
Each of the acts that I have seen so far have been entertaining. At their core is a showcasing of local culture, always a feature of mega events opening ceremonies. It is a kind of ritual, which celebrates sport in all its purity and Hangzhou should be no different. With crowds back, it is a refreshing change from the Covid years when things were all cosmetic. The warmth of the volunteers, who aren’t in masks anymore, a life saver for many of us in the media who are all struggling with the language issue. But then that’s what sport is all about. There is a lot more to it than winning medals and breaking records and so far, the opening ceremony stands testimony.
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