Asian Games in full swing

Dinesh Weerawansa Reporting From China

The sixteenth edition of the Asian Games is in full swing in this Southern Chinese city of Guangzhou with nearly ten thousand sportsmen and women from 45 countries across the continent enjoying the true Olympic spirit.

With the Games reaching its halfway mark, hosts China flexed muscles as a world sporting giant completing a century of gold medals in only six days of competition.

The progress made by Asian countries in the world sports arena has been incredible. At the Olympics, Asian countries and regions, especially China, Japan and South Korea have also made great strides in terms of their gold medals.

China has improved steadily with each Summer Games since Atlanta 1996, and it leapfrogged the United States to lead the gold-medal table in Beijing two years ago. Japan peaked at Athens 2004 by ranking No 5, and the ROK managed its best rank of fifth at Beijing 2008.

IOC President Jacques Rogge said he has been impressed by Asia's sporting rise over the past decade. For Sheikh Ahmad, the Asian Olympic boss, one of his most important tasks is how to sustain this trend.

"We have a lot of plans for further development," said the 47-year-old President of the Olympic Council of Asia. "There are about 12 new games in Asia. I have to think about the Beach Games, the Indoor Games, the Winter Games, the Youth Games and the Asian Games.

This is a big program." The fast growing number of sports, athletes and international tournaments provides a perfect platform for Asian countries to experience organising huge events and put themselves on the radar.

The 16th Asiad in Guangzhou is believed to be the largest multi-sports event ever in the history of world sport, even surpassing the achievements of Olympics as it features 476 events in 42 sports.

But the organizers are making every endeavour to make the athletes' stay a memorable and a comfortable one. At the same time, the organizing committee is making its best effort to reach the masses and attract greater public attention.

"We are proud because we are following in the footsteps of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) movement, with its guidance and under its umbrella, and we are trying to reach its level," Sheikh Ahmad said. "That's why we are proud, because we're not doing something that's far removed from (the Olympics)," the OCA President said. "We are keeping the unity and the solidarity, and we are doing a good job," he added.

The OCA decided to increase 400,000 tickets to the public to satisfy their sporting needs.

It is nice to be a part of the Asian Games family and be among thousands of media personalities covering the Asian version of the Olympics.

Covering my fifth successive Asian Games since 1994, I could rightly state that this is easily the most successful Games ever in its 59-year-old history.

During my previous media coverage for the Daily News and the Sunday Observer in 1994 Hiroshima (Japan), 1998 Bangkok (Thailand), 2002 Busan (South Korea) and 2006 Doha (Qatar), I have never found such a high level of enthusiasm and competition in perfect fashion. Perhaps, the Chinese are geared for the occasion and Asian Games which is relatively smaller when compared to their vast expertise in hosting the Olympic Games in Beijing two years ago.

The Athletes Village here is fast becoming a second home for thousands of sportsmen and women, from 45 countries, belonging to different nationalities, various ethnic, religious and social backgrounds.

But sport has proved a great leveller, bringing them under one umbrella in true Asian harmony.

The athletes are finding new friends, perhaps their soul mates in true spirit. They may be from totally different ethnic backgrounds, speaking contrasting languages and have faith in different religions, but the Asian Games family feeling has narrowed the bridges amongst them. The Games organizers have made every effort to print language cards and provide interpreters as a mode of communication.

But language is no barrier for them to get their messages across. Sign language is the best mode of communication as they could read each others' sporty minds better.

In fact, the relations that are developed here would go a long way, perhaps lifetime! The Asian culture is one of the richest in the world but Asians have a good taste to enjoy those outside the continent. At the invitation of the Guangzhou Asian Games Organising Committee (GAGOC), the Paris-based Melody for Dialogue among Civilisations Association last night presented a unique multicultural concert at the new Guangzhou Opera House, designed by world-renowned architect Zaha Hadid.

The concert entitled "Music for Cultural Harmony - Rimsky-Khorsakov but not only..." offered a new interpretation of Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's seminal work "Scheherezade."

It also had a new composition by contemporary French composer Philippe Rombi. The event featured over 50 dancers and musicians from throughout Asia as well as China's Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra.

Apart from this, there will be a total of 317 sessions of 38 programs presented as an Asian Games cultural campaign by more than 2,000 artists from over 20 countries and regions during Games time.

It will be the largest cultural campaign ever in Guangzhou, featuring the biggest number of performing sessions and participating countries and regions.

A series of culture events will be carried out in 17 venues and the number of performing sessions far exceeds that of the 9th China Art Festival - 111 sessions in total. The Athletes Village consists of everything what the near 10,000 sportsmen and women need, you name it they'd have it! The outpatient medical department at the Athletes' Village takes care of athletes and team officials attending the Games.

Hu Bingjie, Deputy Director of the Medical Services Department of the Guangzhou Asian Games Organising Committee (GAGOC), said that GAGOC had named the Guangzhou Medical College as the main operator of the Outpatient Department of the Athletes' Village, authorising it to be in charge of the preparation of the outpatient department and its Games time operation and management.