Asian Games opening will be flashy extravaganza

The Asian Games will open Friday night when athletes cruise down the Pearl River in a flotilla of 45 ships decorated with flashing LED lights to a ceremony taking place in a unique venue built on an island.

The Asian Games will open on Friday night when athletes cruise down the Pearl River in a flotilla of 45 ships decorated with flashing LED lights to a ceremony taking place in a unique venue built on an island.

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He Jiqing (huh jee-cheen), the organizing committee's director of ceremonies and cultural events, said the ceremony will include more than 6,000 performers and a 10-minute fireworks finale. The lighting of the Asian Games cauldron remains a secret. He is promising a surprise but said it will have Chinese elements and be done in a way that Chinese people will love.

The extravagant ceremony will be conducted amid heavy security in this southern Chinese city.