13 May 2017, 02:14
Over 65,000 watched Islamiad opening in Baku
In the evening on May 12, the Baku Olympic Stadium hosted the solemn opening of the Fourth Islamic Solidarity Games. According to organizers, over 65,000 spectators watched the show at the stadium. Besides, the broadcasting of the ceremony covered 58 countries around the world with the total audience of 1 billion.
The Islamic Solidarity Games are an international sporting event that involves the best athletes from the countries of the Organization of the Islamic Conference. On May 12-22, Baku will host the 4th Islamic Solidarity Games. The programme of the Islamic Solidarity Games includes competitions in 20 sports. About 3000 athletes from all 57 countries participating in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation will take part in the competition.
The opening ceremony started with hoisting the Azerbaijani banner and performing the anthem of the host, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.
There was a water element in the opening scenario. Water is a symbol of the Islamiad, like fire at the Olympic Games. In Islam, water embodies purity and life. Sixteen children brought in water from the Caspian Sea, springs, rivers and lakes of Azerbaijan in jars and poured it into an improvised pool.
Then, the parade of the 54 participating countries took place. Libya and Sudan did not send their athletes, while Kuwait was disqualified by the International Olympic Committee; therefore, the athletes of this country perform at the Islamiad under the flag of the Sports Federation of Islamic Solidarity.
Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.
Author: Faik Medzhid Source: CK correspondent
