The opening ceremony of China's National Games has reportedly been showcased in a more economical style than previous ceremonies by staging it in the daytime for the first time in 26 years, in a move to save on lighting and fireworks.
According to the China Daily, the ceremony and the event settings of the 12th Chinese National Games, held in the capital of Northeast China's Liaoning province, has a total budget of 1.47 million dollars, along with the closing ceremony, which is ten percent of the previous Games'.
The report further said that the ceremony, in which President Xi Jinping announced the Games' official launch, saw 60,000 spectators at the Olympic Center Stadium cheering the mass calisthenics performances, which replaced the extravagant shows enhanced with special effects, following which twelve children lit the cauldron.
China's deputy sports minister Xiao Tian said that they hoped that the new event settings would arouse local sports systems' enthusiasm to invest more in youth cultivation and emerging sports.
However, many experts are of the opinion that it is too soon to say that the Games have been economized, with a web portal's editor saying that as the Games last several months, they need more ways to make them sustainable.
According to the report, a new focus on the younger generation is shown by the inclusion of youth competitions in three big ball sports, adding that about 9,770 athletes from 38 provinces, equivalent administrative regions and sports associations will compete in 31 sports and fight for 420 gold medals in 14 cities in Liaoning.
