Olympic Opening Ceremony, Fireworks, Blue Screen of Death and Fake Ethnic Children

by Milieunet | July 31, 2008 at 02:51 am

10945 views | 16 Recommendations | 4 comments

Update 18-08: And again there is some news about faking during the Opening Ceremony. Do you remember those 56 children representing China's 56 ethnic groups? Fake again.

Well those children were selected to be dressed up to represent the minorities. Faking children from ethnic minorities to portray a vision of a harmonious utopia to an international audience.

Yes, yes, no problem in China. Cant'wait to hear about the next thing that was fake.

Update: And there is more. Did you see the Blue Screen of death? No, it was there, but in broadcasting it was gone. Everything had to look perfect for the rest of the world. See photos of the famous Windows crash window

Update: Fantastic show. May be you missed it or want to know more about it. See this nice selection of information:

The Opening Ceremony
Reuters: World media hails Beijing's perfect night
China Daily: Zhang rises to greatest directorial challenge
The Guardian: Patriot games: China makes its point with greatest show
BBC: Spectators awed as Games begin
The Hindu: Games get off to a cracking start
AFP: Beijing's Games kick off with spectacular opening ceremony
The Independent: Opening ceremony: the meaning behind the spectacle
LA Times: An Olympics, at least, for the people, about the people
The Times: Olympics: the power and the glory - China leaves world awestruck
Edmonton Sun: Olympic opening ceremonies the best ever
Irish Times: Controversy takes back seat as Olympics get off to a flying start
Globe and Mail: Fiery reaction on the streets
TIME China Blog: "I'd never think we'd have a day like this"
WSJ Blog: The Grand Li Ning Finale

The Business
NPR: Many Ask If Olympic Sponsorship Is Worth Cost
The Telegraph: Beijing Olympics: The ultimate business networking opportunity
BusinessWeek: Analysis: Why Olympic Sponsors Won't Get the Gold in China
The Moscow Times: Olympic Sponsorship Worth More Than Gold
ABC News: Sponsors Win Big With Coveted Olympic Partnerships

The Fashion Olympics
WSJ: Best and worst dressers at the opening ceremony (slideshow)

The Weather
Bloomberg: Worst Olympic Heat Since '96 Brings Bad Air to Games
NineMSN: Beijing shrouded in smog 'white-out'

The Protesters and the Dissidents
Reuters: Turkish man sets self on fire in anti-China protest
The Evening Standard: Banker's daughter arrested in Beijing protest
AP: Anti-China protests worldwide as Olympics begin
Reuters: "Blood" Olympics protested in India and Nepal
The Guardian: Olympic protests held around the world
CNN: Nepal: More than 1,000 Tibet protesters held
AP: Mia Farrow shows alternative 'Darfur Olympics'
The Independent: Dissident invites Olympic chief to visit jail
AFP: Hong Kong detains US-based Chinese dissident: rights group

Elsewhere in China
Yahoo! Sports: An Olympics of hope for earthquake victims
AP: Beijing couples rush to tie knot on lucky 08-08-08
Mercury News: Away from stadium, mood in Beijing is muted
Financial Times: Olympics cast a pall over Shanghai
WSJ: Shanghai’s Olympic-Sized Selloff

Elsewhere around the world
Reuters: China invokes Olympics in urging South Ossetia ceasefire
Boston Globe: Romney calls on China to reconsider revoked visa
Economic Times: Olympics 2008: India more hooked to Games than China

The London Olympics
RTE: Olympic officer calls for end of global torch relay
UPI: 2012 Olympic torch to stay in Britain
The Telegraph: London Olympics torch relay may be confined to Britain

Source: http://shanghaiist.com/

Update: one week before the start of the Olympics the Chinese held a second rehersel of the fireworks at the end of the Opening Ceremony. See the new videos

Today the real Opening Ceremony is a fact. 08-08-2008 at 8 hours, 8 minutes and 8 seconds the show will start. During three and a half hours spectators all over the world will see an amazing show, inside and outside the National Stadium, the Bird's Nest.

In Beijing all activities stop. Airports are closed, highways and other mainstreets are closed, subways are closed, the trains don't ride anymore and almost every business, shop, factory is closed. China and specially Beijing is ready for the Games. Over a few weeks the Chinese will pick-up their normal lives again. They are proud of the Games in their city.

Here is a list of who will carry the flag and lead their country into the Birds Nest. The list of countries entering the stadium is in Chinese alphabetical order. It’s an IOC rule for countries to enter the stadium in alphabetical order of the local language. Australia for example, is usually one of the first countries, but will be the 203rd country. Greece always leads the procession with the host country entering last.

The United States will be the 140th country to enter the stadium.

1 Greece (GRE) Ilias Iliadis Judo
2 Guinea (GUI)
3 Guinea-Bissau (GBS)
4 Turkey (TUR)
5 Turkmenistan (TKM) Guvanch Nurmuhamedov Judo
6 Yemen (YEM)
7 Maldives (MDV)
8 Malta (MLT) Marcon Bezzina Judo
9 Madagascar (MAD)
10 Malaysia (MAS) Azizul Hasni Awang Cycling (track)
11 Mali (MLI) Daba Modibo Keita Taekwondo
12 Malawi (MAW)
13 FYR Macedonia (MKD) Atanas Nikolovski Canoe / Kayak (slalom)
14 Marshall Islands (MHL) Waylon Muller
15 Cayman Islands (CAY)
16 Bhutan (BHU)
17 Ecuador (ECU)
18 Eritrea (ERI)
19 Jamaica (JAM)
20 Belgium (BEL) Se’bastien Godefroid Sailing
21 Vanuatu (VAN) Priscila Tommy Table tennis
22 Israel (ISR) Michael Kolganov Canoe / Kayak (flatwater)
23 Japan (JPN) Ai Fukuhara Table tennis
24 Chinese Taipei (TPE) Lai Shengrong Softball
25 Central African Republic (CAF)
26 Hong Kong, China (HKG) Wong Kam-po Cycling
27 Gambia (GAM)
28 Benin (BEN)
29 Mauritius (MRI)
30 Mauritania (MTN)
31 Denmark (DEN) Joachim Olsen Athletics (shot put)
32 Uganda (UGA)
33 Ukraine (UKR) Yana Klochkova Swimming
34 Uruguay (URU) Alejandro Foglia Sailing (Laser)
35 Uzbekistan (UZB)
36 Brunei Brunei (BRU)
37 Barbados (BAR)
38 Papua New Guinea (PNG)
39 Brazil (BRA) Robert Scheidt Sailing (Star)
40 Paraguay (PAR) Vi’ctor Fatecha Athletics (javelin throw)
41 Bahrain (BRN) Rakia Al Gassra Athletics (sprints)
42 Bahamas (BAH)
43 Panama (PAN) Irving Saladino Athletics (long jump)
44 Pakistan (PAK) Zeeshan Ashraf Field hockey
45 Palestine (PLE)
46 Cuba (CUB) Mijail Lopez Wrestling (Greco-Roman)
47 Burkina Faso (BUR)
48 Burundi (BDI)
49 Timor-Leste (TLS)
50 Qatar (QAT)
51 Rwanda (RWA)
52 Luxembourg (LUX)
53 Chad (CHA)
54 Belarus (BLR) Alexandr Romankov
55 India (IND) Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore Shooting
56 Indonesia (INA) I Gusti Made Oka Sulaksana Sailing (RS:X)
57 Lithuania (LTU) S(aru-nas Jasikevic(ius Basketball
58 Niger (NIG)
59 Nigeria (NGR)
60 Nicaragua (NCA) Alexis Arguello
61 Nepal (NEP) Deepak Bista Taekwondo
62 Ghana (GHA)
63 Canada (CAN) Adam van Koeverden Canoe / Kayak (flatwater)
64 Gabon (GAB)
65 San Marino (SMR) Daniela Del Din Shooting
66 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (VIN)
67 Saint Lucia (LCA)
68 Sa~o Tome’ and Pri’ncipe (STP)
69 Saint Kitts and Nevis (SKN)
70 Guyana (GUY)
71 Djibouti (DJI)
72 Kyrgyzstan (KGZ) Talant Dzhanagulov Judo
73 Laos (LAO)
74 Armenia (ARM) Albert Azaryan Gymnastics (coach)
75 Spain (ESP) David Cal Figueroa Canoe / Kayak (flatwater)
76 Bermuda (BER)
77 Liechtenstein (LIE)
78 Congo (CGO)
79 DR Congo (COD)
80 Iraq (IRQ)
81 Iran (IRI) Homa Hosseini Rowing
82 Guatemala (GUA) Kevin Cordon Buezo Badminton
83 Hungary (HUN) Zolta’n Kammerer Canoe / Kayak (flatwater)
84 Dominican Republic (DOM) Fe’lix Sa’nchez Athletics (400m Hurdles)
85 Dominica (DMA)
86 Togo (TOG)
87 Iceland (ISL)
88 Guam (GUM)
89 Angola (ANG)
90 Antigua and Barbuda (ANT)
91 Andorra (AND)
92 Tonga (TGA)
93 Jordan (JOR) Zeina Shaban Table tennis
94 Equatorial Guinea (GEQ)
95 Finland (FIN) Juha Hirvi Shooting
96 Croatia (CRO) Ivano Balic’ Handball
97 Sudan (SUD)
98 Suriname (SUR)
99 Libya (LBA) Mohamed Ben Saleh Judo
100 Liberia (LBR)
101 Belize (BIZ)
102 Cape Verde (CPV)
103 Cook Islands (COK) Sam Pera Junior Weightlifting
104 Saudi Arabia (KSA)
105 Algeria (ALG)
106 Albania (ALB) Sahit Prizreni Wrestling (Freestyle)
107 United Arab Emirates (UAE) Maitha bint Mohammed Al Maktoum[41] Taekwondo
108 Argentina (ARG) Manu Gino’bili Basketball
109 Oman (OMA)
110 Aruba (ARU)
111 Afghanistan (AFG)
112 Azerbaijan (AZE) Farid Mansurov Wrestling
113 Namibia (NAM) Mannie Heymans Cycling (mountain bike)
114 Tanzania (TAN)
115 Latvia (LAT) Vadims Vasil,evskis Athletics (Javelin Throw)
116 Great Britain (GBR) Mark Foster Swimming (50m freestyle)
117 British Virgin Islands (IVB)
118 Kenya (KEN) Wilfred Bungei Athletics (800M)
119 Romania (ROU) Valeria Bese Handball
120 Palau (PLW)
121 Tuvalu (TUV) Logona Esau Weightlifting
122 Venezuela (VEN) Softball Team Softball
123 Solomon Islands (SOL) Wendy Hale Weightlifting
124 France (FRA) Tony Estanguet Canoe / Kayak (slalom)
125 Poland (POL) Marek Twardowski Canoe / Kayak (flatwater)
126 Puerto Rico (PUR) McWilliams Arroyo Judo
127 Bosnia and Herzegovina (BIH) Amel Mekic’ Judo
128 Bangladesh (BAN) Rubel Rana Swimming
129 Bolivia (BOL)
130 Norway (NOR) Ruth Kasirye Weightlifting
131 South Africa (RSA)
132 Cambodia (CAM)
133 Kazakhstan (KAZ) Bakhyt Akhmetov Weightlifting
134 Kuwait (KUW)
135 Co^te d’Ivoire (CIV)
136 Comoros (COM)
137 Bulgaria (BUL) Petar Stoychev Swimming (marathon)
138 Russia (RUS) Andrei Kirilenko Basketball
139 Syria (SYR)
140 United States (USA) Lopez Lomong Athletics (1500metres)
141 Virgin Islands (ISV)
142 American Samoa (ASA)
143 Honduras (HON)
144 Zimbabwe (ZIM)
145 Tunisia (TUN)
146 Thailand (THA) Manus Boonjumnong Boxing
147 Egypt (EGY) Karam Gaber Wrestling (Greco-Roman)
148 Ethiopia (ETH)
149 Lesotho (LES)
150 Mozambique (MOZ)
151 Netherlands (NED)
152 Netherlands Antilles (AHO)
153 Grenada (GRN)
154 Georgia (GEO)
155 Somalia (SOM)
156 Colombia (COL) Mari’a Luisa Calle Cycling (track)
157 Costa Rica (CRC)
158 Trinidad and Tobago (TRI)
159 Peru (PER) Sixto Barrera Wrestling (Greco-Roman)
160 Ireland (IRL) Ciara Peelo Sailing (Laser Radial)
161 Estonia (EST) Martin Padar Judo
162 Haiti (HAI)
163 Czech Republic (CZE) Stepanka Hilgertova Canoe / Kayak (Slalom)
164 Kiribati (KIR)
165 Philippines (PHI) Manny Pacquiao
166 El Salvador (ESA)
167 Samoa (SAM)
168 Micronesia (FSM)
169 Tajikistan (TJK) Dilshod Nazarov Athletics (hammer)
170 Vietnam (VIE)
171 Botswana (BOT)
172 Sri Lanka (SRI) Susanthika Jayasinghe Athletics (sprints)
173 Swaziland (SWZ)
174 Slovenia (SLO) Urs(ka Z(olnir Judo
175 Slovakia (SVK) Elena Kaliska’ Canoe / Kayak (slalom)
176 Portugal (POR) Nelson E’vora Athletics
177 South Korea (KOR) Jang Sung-Ho Judo
178 North Korea (PRK)
179 Fiji (FIJ) Makelesi Bulikiobo Athletics (sprints)
180 Cameroon (CMR) Frank Moussima Judo
181 Montenegro (MNE) Veljko Uskokovic’ Water polo
182 Chile (CHI) Fernando Gonza’lez Tennis
183 Austria (AUT) Hans-Peter Steinacher Sailing (Tornado)
184 Myanmar (MYA)
185 Switzerland (SUI) Roger Federer Tennis
186 Sweden (SWE)
187 Nauru (NRU)
188 Mongolia (MGL) Mahgal Bayarjavhlan Judo
189 Singapore (SIN) Li Jiawei Table tennis
190 New Zealand (NZL) Mahe Drysdale Rowing
191 Italy (ITA) Antonio Rossi Canoe / Kayak (flatwater)
192 Senegal (SEN)
193 Serbia (SRB) Jasna S(ekaric’ Shooting
194 Seychelles (SEY)
195 Sierra Leone (SLE)
196 Cyprus (CYP) George Achilleos Shooting
197 Mexico (MEX) Paola Espinosa Diving
198 Lebanon (LIB)
199 Germany (GER) Dirk Nowitzki Basketball
200 Moldova (MDA) Nicolai Ceban Wrestling (Freestyle)
201 Monaco (MON)
202 Morocco (MAR)
203 Australia (AUS) James Tomkins Rowing
204 Zambia (ZAM)
205 China (CHN) Yao Ming Basketball

Older story:

A South Korean television station has broadcast footage of the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony after a reporter managed to breach security and walk into the Olympic stadium during a rehearsal this week.

Rehearsals for the ceremony, directed by China's best known film director, Zhang Yimou, were meant to have been held under strict security. source Al Jazeera

So the video was some moments on the internet and then disappeared. But once on the internet is most of the time for ever on the internet.

So when you want to see the video look here (gone already) or here (still there). And when you want to see how the end of the opening ceremony will be: see the Olympic Fireworks rehersel.

Now we know a lot of the Opening Cermony was fake:

http://www.nowpublic.com/world/beijing-2008-opening-olympic-ceremony-was-unreal

http://www.nowpublic.com/world/china-olympic-ceremony-star-mimed

32 See all footage | View Slideshow

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recommend This comment thread is now closed

amyjudd

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 12:19 on July 31st, 2008

Milieunet, I like this story. It's good stuff.

Interesting - it looks like it's going to be a big spectacle!

dominic_london (not verified)

at 14:25 on August 14th, 2008

Opening ceremony parade protest avoidance

Disorganised protesters would find it hard to make themselves noticed in the gigantic extravaganza of the Olympic opening ceremony in Beijing. But a viral 'Ti-Bet! Ti-Bet!" chant could have engulfed the stadium audience had there been a particular instant when Tibet was in people's thoughts. With an alphabetical parade of countries this moment would have happened: if Thailand were followed by Timor Leste (as it would have under the parade format of all past olympics), Tibet's absence in the world's rollcall of nations could have sparked a moment of free expression utterly beyond the control of the ceremony's stage-managers. This would have been extremely unwelcome to the host nation, which makes me wonder whether the unprecedented step of parading national teams in a to-me-opaque non-alphabetical order wasn't a deliberate strategy to avoid having a 'spark moment'. I know that if I were the Chinese government and seeking to squash unauthorised politics from their showcase event, I would have chosen exactly this strategy.

alfred ng

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 09:14 on August 19th, 2008

Milieunet, I like this story. It's good stuff.

I had read the same thing from one of the Chinese paper too. ( Ming Pao Daily, August 16, 2008), those 56 children are from a children art group, they are all Chinese.

mmmomm (not verified)

at 10:25 on August 19th, 2008

I don't think all of these fake issue was a big deal to me! As long as it was a good show, that's good enough. Pretty much enjoy seeing all different people from different culture gather around for one special evening!

Specially when the Australian, Italian and Spanish athletics walk into the stadium, they were enjoying like they are in a hugh party! Pretty funny scene!

Very impress with the Swedes outfit, it shows that they really respect other country's culture and event. Frankly, their outfit is better than the China team's outfit. Good work with Sweden outfit designer!