The 18th Asian Games, the biggest multi-sport event after the Olympics, begins in Jakarta and Palembang, Indonesia, on Saturday.
The mega sporting event will run till September 2, 2018. The games features 484 events in 42 sports. This time, there will be two demonstration events like eSports and Canoe Polo.
The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has sent a contingent of 570 athletes to participate in the Asian Games. Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra will be the flag-bearer for India at the opening ceremony.
India had equalled their best performance in terms of medals won in the 2014 Games with a total of 57, including 11 gold medals.
Here are the live updates:
Susi Susanti lights the cauldron
Susi Susanti lights the cauldron, and with this the torch completes its journey! The torch that has been brought from India and across Indonesia, has finally been placed in the cauldron!
Athletes take pledge
Indonesia's Olympic medalists are carrying the Olympic Council of Asia flag hoisted by Indonesia's Flag Hoisting Troop. Athletes take the oath of Asian Games.
Dancers perform during the opening ceremony of the 2018 Asian Games at the Gelora Bung Karno main stadium in Jakarta on August 18, 2018.
The pledge was followed by some cultural programmes from Indonesia.
After the fireworks, 1st medals up for grabs at Asian Games
Sun Yang has the international profile, three Olympic gold medals, and he’ll compete in the first of the men’s events in the pool on the first day of medal competition at the Asian Games.
But there’s one thing he’s not likely to win on Sunday. The honour of winning the first medal in the games will likely come in wushu, one of the traditional martial arts, and could even go to another Sun of China.
The men’s changquan competition in wushu starts at 9 a.m. local time and is predicted to be the first final completed at the 18th Asian Games.
Sun Peiyuan won the changquan when the 2015 world championships were held in Indonesia and is one of the favorites for gold among 18 starters
Asian Games declared open in Jakarta
The Asian Games was declared open by Indonesia's President Joko Widodo late Saturday during a colourful opening ceremony in Jakarta dominated by the joint march of North and South Korea.
A burst of fireworks followed the announcement, marking the start of the two-week tournament to be held in Jakarta and Palembang in Sumatra.
Indonesia athletes arrive inside the stadium
The last one to arrive is the Indonesia team the host country. Amid loud cheers, the athletes from the host nation entered the arena. The President and other dignitaries give standing ovation and thundering applause to Indonesia.
Pakistan and Palestine team arrive
Pakistan team arrives inside the arena followed by the Palestine team. Crowed gives a warm cheer was given to both the teams. Sri Lanka was also given a warm welcome by the crowd.
Two Koreas march together
North and South Korea marched together behind the Korean Unification flag at the Asian Games opening ceremony on Saturday, in the latest demonstration of their rapprochement.
Fireworks explode over the Gelora Bung Karno main stadium during the opening ceremony of the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta on August 18, 2018.
South Korean women's basketball player Lim Yung-hui carried the blue and white flag as the Korean athletes paraded into Jakarta's Gelora Bung Karno stadium.
Indian athletes arrive
Indian athletes are parading inside the arena. Indeed proud moment for the javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra.
Athletes begin to parade in at the beginning of the opening ceremony. The biggest multi-sport event after the Olympics had started.
A view of the opening ceremony
Kuwait welcomed back to Asian Games with OCA warning
Kuwait was warned by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) on Saturday to stop its “world record” of government interference in sport or face being exiled for a third time.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) this week provisionally lifted its ban on Kuwait, allowing the Gulf state's athletes to march under their own flag at Saturday's Asian Games opening ceremony in Jakarta.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo arrives on a motorbike to the opening ceremony for the 18th Asian Games in the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, Jakarta, Indonesia on August 18, 2018.
But the IOC said that despite its “gesture of goodwill” the reasons for its original suspension remained valid.
“This is a world record for government interference in the Olympic movement, no country is like this,” OCA director general Husain Al Musallam told AFP after an executive board meeting discussed the matter in Jakarta on Saturday.
Asian Games feature 11,500 athletes
For size, the Asian Games are enormous. They feature about 11,500 athletes, which is about 1,000 more than a typical Summer Olympics.
For diversity, they offer many sports that are unseen at the Olympics but native to Asia. How about the Indian sport of kabaddi, or kurash, a traditional martial art from Uzbekistan, or pencak silat, an Indonesian martial art?
Esports will also get a look as a demonstration sport, and jet ski is on the schedule
The games, which open Saturday and run through Sept. 2, also showcase sports climbing and skateboarding, two events being added to the schedule for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
And get ready for this there’s competition in contract bridge, which should attract a slightly older demographic than gymnastics or swimming. The oldest card player is reported to be 81.
Ban will keep China out of Asian Games weightlifting
A doping ban will keep China out of weightlifting at the Asian Games.
China and eight other countries, including Asian Games participant Kazakhstan, were suspended last October for 12 months. Weightlifting has been under pressure from the IOC to eliminate endemic doping or be banned from the Olympics.
An Olympic Council of Asia spokesman on Saturday said there was no notice from the International Weightlifting Federation that the ban on China and Kazakhstan had been lifted, meaning the sanction was upheld.
(With inputs from AP, AFP and Reuters)
