The Asian Games officially kicked off today, Saturday, in the Japanese city of Nagoya, in a ceremony considered to be more protocol than celebration, as some competitions began ahead of the event.
Amid a busy competition schedule, basketball matches started on September 10, over a week ago, and the men's basketball semi-finals were held yesterday, one day before the official opening.
Football competitions also began shortly before that.
Typically, football competitions in the Summer Olympics start a few days before the official opening, but this is a multi-sport event, so competitions began earlier.
The Asian Games feature the participation of at least 11,000 athletes.
Iraq is participating with a sports delegation of 14 athletes competing in seven sports: athletics, boxing, wrestling, weightlifting, rowing, jiu-jitsu, and teqball.
The Paris 2024 Summer Olympics is expected to have around 10,700 athletes, while the last edition of the Asian Games, held in Hangzhou, China in 2023, saw participation from about 12,000 athletes.
The Japanese organizers have yet to reveal the official number of participating athletes from 45 countries and regions, competing in 43 sports.
However, it is likely that the number will approach the total participants in China three years ago, possibly exceeding it with the addition of some new sports.
The games include traditional Olympic competitions such as athletics, swimming, and football, alongside some unique Asian sports, including kurash, kabaddi, and sepak takraw.
"Kurash" is a form of ancient wrestling that originated in Uzbekistan, while kabaddi resembles a team tag game but with a strong physical element. Sepak takraw combines elements of volleyball and football.
The organizers have also added mixed martial arts, paddle, and teqball to the competition program, alongside esports, which explains the tight schedule.
Japan's delegation has the largest number of athletes, totaling 933, while China is represented by a little over 800 athletes.
China won 201 gold medals in the previous edition, followed by Japan with 52 golds and South Korea with 42, and this ranking is expected to be repeated in the current edition.
Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako led the list of dignitaries present, along with the President of the Olympic Council of Asia, Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, who was elected to the position earlier this year.
In his speech, Sheikh Joaan said, "Tonight, Asia, and a large part of the world, turns its eyes to Japan," before the Emperor officially declared the games open.
Kristy Coventry, the President of the International Olympic Committee, also attended the opening ceremony.
The opening ceremony bore the slogan "Harmonized Heartbeat," while the stage set up inside Nagoya's stadium took the shape of a large heart.
Afghanistan led the traditional parade of athletes (in alphabetical order), while Japan came last and, of course, received a warm round of applause from the audience.