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Olympics returns to Greece in lavish show
(Reuters)
Updated: 2004-08-14 03:48
With five rings ablaze in the middle of a manmade sea, the Olympics returned
to its birthplace Friday in an epic homecoming heralded by a pounding heartbeat,
a galloping centaur and an array of Greek gods followed by the world's greatest
athletes. "The Olympic Games: Welcome back to Greece!" an announcer cried to
kick off the opening ceremony.
It was a moment many doubted Greek organizers could pull off, after years of
worrisome delays and constant pressure to bolster the most expensive security
network in Olympic history.
Fireworks explode over the Athens
Olympic Stadium as the 2004 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony begins in
Athens August 13, 2004. [Reuters] |
The ceremony also closed an important circle in sports, from the games'
innocent rebirth in 1896 to the latest gathering in an age beset by fears of
terrorism and instability.
"Greece is standing before you. We are ready. ... We have waited long for
this moment," said the games' chief organizer, Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki.
At dusk, a countdown video filled the screen at the Olympic Stadium — whose
new weblike canopy was bolted into place only last month. The numbers clicked
down from 28: one second for each of the games scheduled since the first modern
Olympiad in an all-marble arena in central Athens. Each tick of the clock was
accompanied by the amplified sound of a human heartbeat.
Then, with a blast of fireworks around the stadium roof, the ceremony was
fully under way. Minutes later, the five Olympic rings were ablaze.
"We did it! We did it!" chanted a group of Greeks in the stand waving their
flag.
A round-the-clock work blitz — under broiling sun and blinding spotlights —
managed to pull together the vast network of venues, transport links, villages
and security needed for the athletes and heads of state at the first Summer
Games since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
A sign of the security measures floated overhead — a blimp with
supersensitive spyware. Outside the stadium sat symbols of the delays — dirt
expanses instead of landscaped paths, idle cranes and trees planted just last
week.
Earlier, an International Olympic Committee member who helped oversee the
preparations noted how much was at stake if the Greeks failed the task.
"I think you have saved Greece and saved the IOC from great humiliation,"
Alex Gilady told Athens organizers.
Not surprisingly, Greek mythology played a central role in the extravaganza
that officially began the Olympiad, a big-budget show running from reverent
tradition to Las Vegas-style pageantry.
After the burning Olympic flames subsided, a boy on a replica of a ship
sailed into the arena, waving a small Greek flag.
Members of China's Olympic team
parade during the opening ceremony of the Athens 2004 Olympic Games August
13, 2004. A spectacular opening ceremony launched the Athens Olympics on
Friday, lifting spirits in the Games' ancient birthplace after the host
nation was rocked by a drugs drama involving its two top sprinters.
[Xinhua] |
Then the centaur — the mythological half-man, half-horse — waded into the
water and tossed a spear of light representing a javelin. From the center of the
stadium rose a statue representing an ancient form from Greece's Cyclades
islands. The form broke apart to reveal other figures from Greek history.
The ancient god of love, Eros, flew above two lovers dancing and playing in
the water. Then Eros hovered over a procession of figures from Greek history —
from ancient vase paintings to a tribute to the Greek shepherd, Spiros Louis,
who won the first Olympic marathon.
"The great moment has come!" cried the announcer in the stadium. Moments
later, the biggest parade of nations in Olympic history began with the
appearance of Greek weightlifter Pyrros Dimas, who is seeking his fourth
consecutive gold medal at the games.
Behind him more than 10,500 athletes streamed into the stadium.
There was huge applause for Afghanistan on its return to Olympic competition
after an eight-year absense and with its first women athletes. Coach Nina
Suratger, in a shimmering green robe and head scarf, carried the flag — one of
202 that filled the stadium field with a rainbow of colors.
The entrance of the U.S. team — led by basketball guard Dawn Staley — drew
cheers. But some people also stood and put their thumbs down in an apparent show
of displeasure for the war in Iraq. Moments later, the Iraqis entered to a
roaring ovation.
The Chinese team was led by 7-foot-6 Yao Ming, who towered over even other
baskeball giants in the main stadium field.
Paraguay carried a banner that read "From Horror to Hope" in apparent
reference to the supermarket fire that killed nearly 400 people earlier this
month.
Greece, because of its links to the ancient games, entered first, as usual.
But, as the host nation, Greek athletes also were the last into the stadium in
the biggest procession in Olympic history.
But the Greek team had two glaring holes. A doping scandal threatens the
country's biggest track stars — 200-meter champion Kostas Kenteris and 100-meter
silver medalist Katerina Thanou.
Kenteris had been considered the favorite to light the Olympic cauldron.
Instead, he and Thanou were hospitalized with minor injuries following a
motorcycle wreck. The accident came after the two were accused of evading a drug
test, and they might miss the games.
All along, Greek officials continually described the Olympics as a way to
shed the country's reputation as a parochial and unruly corner of the European
Union. The transport minister even said drivers' respect for Olympic lanes shows
Greece can be "civilized."
The Olympic deadlines forced projects long taken for granted in other
European capitals: highways around city centers, a serious subway and rail
network and efforts to preserve architectural landmarks.
"No country has been more underrated than Greece," Angelopoulos-Dasalaki
said.
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