The
Opening Ceremony is a celebration showcasing the best of the Host
Nation. It also features a parade of all competing nations and the
highly anticipated entrance of the Olympic Flame, which ignites the
Cauldron and signals the start of the Games.
The eyes of the
world will be on London for the Opening Ceremony of the London 2012
Olympic Games. The Ceremony will provide an opportunity for the world to
view the artistic expression of the Artistic Director (Danny Boyle) and
his team, and the culture of our Host City and the UK. There are
certain elements that must feature in every Ceremony, as outlined in the
International Olympic Committee (IOC) charter. The artistic performance
of the Ceremony then gets underway and welcomes the world to the London
2012 Games.
The name of the Olympic Opening Ceremony show will
be ‘Isles of Wonder’ and the worldwide broadcast will commence at 9pm.
The Ceremony will kick off with the sound of the largest harmonically
tuned bell in Europe, produced by the Whitechapel Foundry, and the
Stadium will be transformed into the British countryside for opening
scene ‘Green and Pleasant’, which includes real farmyard animals. The
Ceremony will also include a special sequence celebrating the best of
British, featuring volunteer performers from the NHS.
Danny
Boyle, Artistic Director of the London 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony,
said: ‘Our Isles of Wonder salutes and celebrates the exuberant
creativity of the British genius in an Opening Ceremony that we hope
will be as unpredictable and inventive as the British people.’
Read more about the creative team behind the Opening Ceremony
Receiving the Head of State
The
Head of State of the Host Country is received at the entrance of the
Olympic Stadium by the President of the IOC. For the London 2012 Olympic
Opening Ceremony, Her Majesty the Queen will be greeted by Jacques
Rogge.
Parade of Athletes
A procession of the
participating teams in the Stadium, nation by nation. Teams enter in
alphabetical order, according to the language of the Host Country, apart
from the Greek team, which enters first for the Olympics, and the team
of the Host Nation (in this case Team GB), who march in last.
Speeches
Once
all the nations have arrived into the Stadium, LOCOG Chair Seb Coe will
give a speech, followed by Jacques Rogge. They will end their speeches
by inviting the Head of State to officially declare the Games open.
Olympic Anthem and Flag
Once
the Games have been declared open, the Olympic Flag is then carried
into the Stadium and hoisted into the air as the respective Anthem is
played. The Olympic Charter states that each flag must fly for the
entire duration of the Games – placed in a prominent position in the
main Stadium.
Oaths
A participating athlete, judge and
coach from the Host Nation stand on the rostrum and, holding a corner of
the IOC flag in their left hand and raising their right, take the Oath,
vowing to compete and judge according to the rules of their respective
sport,.
The Torch and Cauldron
The big finale is the
entrance of the Olympic Flame into the Stadium. It is passed through the
athletes to the final Torchbearer, who will ceremoniously light the
Cauldron, indicating the beginning of the Games. The Flame will continue
to burn for the whole of the Games.
Creative team
A host
of world-class British directors and producers are leading the artistic
team to stage the Opening Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Performers
A
total cast of 15,000 will take part in the London 2012 Opening and
Closing Ceremonies, which will be watched by an estimated audience of
four billion.
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