Bhubaneswar: The 22nd Asian Athletics Championships kicked off with a dazzling opening ceremony with scintillating performance by artistes at Kalinga Stadium here on Wednesday.
After 90 days of hard work, the much-awaited historic event was finally declared open by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik with international athletics federation president Sebastian Coe and Asian body chief Dahlan Al-Hamad in attendance.
“We could meet the challenges of hosting this international event in record time because of the blessings of Lord Jagannath,” the Chief Minister said.
Athletics Federation of India President Adille Sumariwalla, Union Sports Secretary Injeti Srinivas, former long jumper Anju Bobby George, Shiny Wilson, PT Usha and other legendary athletes were also present to witness ceremony, which was turned into a spectacular show of light, sound, song and dance.
The Indian contingent of 95 athletes drew the loudest cheer from the crowd while marching past the brand new synthetic track. Over 800 athletes from 45 countries are participating in the event.
Odia sprinter Srabani Nanda took the oath on behalf of athletes while India’s Tintu Luka played the role of flag bearer for the host.
Bollywood singer Shankar Mahadevan had the crowd sway to his Rangabati performance. Flawlessly with proper diction and style, it was pre-recorded as lip syncing did not match.
A troupe from Thailand stole hearts with their perfectly synchronised performance so did the Prince Dance Group from Odisha.
The dancers essayed the story of Konark temple with beautiful choreography by eminent danseuse Aruna Mohnanty. The show was concluded with a spectacular display of fireworks.
More than 30,000 spectators witness the one-of-its-kind event.
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