The opening ceremony of the Asian Games 2023, 19th edition of the continental multisport event will officially kick off Today in Hangzhou, China.
The Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center Stadium, also known as the Big Lotus, will host the Asian Games opening ceremony.
The state-of-the-art venue, primarily built as a football stadium in 2018, has a capacity of up to 80,000 spectators. The Asian Games 2023 opening ceremony will start at 6:00 PM (BST).
The inaugural ceremony at the Asian Games 2023 will pay an ode to China’s rich heritage while celebrating the country’s modern outlook with elements of artificial intelligence and eco-friendly technology.
The Games will be the first continental meet featuring a digital torch-lighting ceremony, wherein millions of torch-bearers will transform the digital flames into a digital human figure on the Qiantang River. With 3D animation and augmented reality, electronic smokeless fireworks will also be on show at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center Stadium.
Chinese President Xi Jinping is set to attend the 19th Asian Games opening ceremony. Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Hong Kong China’s leader John Lee Ka-chiu and the Republic of Korea’s Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and many other eminent foreign dignitaries will also be in attendance.
Sabina Khatun, captain of women football and NiazMurshed, the first Grand Master in the Asouth Asia will be Bangladesh’s flag bearers at the Hangzhou 2023 opening ceremony.
A total of 12000 athletes from across the Asian countries will be in action in 39 sports at the continental meet. Most of the athletes of the Bangladesh contingent have already reached venues.
Bangladesh will compete in the 17 disciplines when men’s football team have started their campaign when women cricket team also began their mission.
BSS add; The Games will be staged at 54 venues-- 14 newly constructed mostly in Hangzhou-- but also extending to the cities as far field as Wenzhou, 300 kilometres (180 miles) south. The stadium, with a capacity of up to 80,000, where athletics and the opening and closing ceremonies will be staged.
Bangladesh Olympic Association's (BOA) Secretary General Syed Shahed Reza, who is now staying in Hangzhou, expressed his high optimism for the athletes’ positive result in the Games.
He hoped that the athletes of Bangladesh would bring good result from archery and shooting disciplines in the games.
The BOA secretary general also expressed his high optimism with the two expatriate athletes -- female boxer ZeenatFerdous and England-based Bangladeshi sprinter Imranur Rahman-- by saying that there is also scope for getting good result in boxing and athletics events as well.
Bangladesh is participating in 17 disciplines in the Games - archery (men’s and women’s), athletics (men’s and women’s), boxing (men’s and women’s), cricket( men's and women's), football ( man’s and women's), bridge (men's), Gold ( men's and women's), hockey (men's), kabaddi (men’s and women’s), shooting( men's and women's), swimming( men’s and women’s), weightlifting (men's), gymnastics (men's) karate (men's and women’s), chess, fencing and taekwondo.
