Guangzhou spent lot less than Doha on opening ceremony

GUANGZHOU - The cost of the opening and closing ceremonies put together here in the Guangzhou Asian Games will be much less than what the Games organisers spent in Doha four years ago, a senior official of the organising committee said.

“Some 380 million yuan ($57.2 million) has been spent for the opening and closing ceremony and the fireworks,” said He Jiqing, the head of celebration and activity sector of the organising committee, after the dazzling opening ceremony on a Pearl river island Friday.

Though the official did not reveal the exact amount on the two ceremonies, as the closing is on Nov 27, he was sure that Guangzhou’s total expenses would be less than Doha’s $180 million for only the opening ceremony.

The Guangzhou opening ceremony moved out of the traditional stadium to Haixinsha island, surrounded by residential buildings and skyscrapers.

“Creativity plays an important role in our preparation. As the mother river of Guangzhou, Pearl River, inspired us a lot,” said Che Weiya, director of the opening ceremony.

“At Doha, the theme of the opening ceremony was desert and here it was a water,” said Chen, who was an assistant director for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Beijing 2008 Olympics.