Guangzhou, Nov. 27: The skies lit up with dazzling fireworks as an emotional China brought the curtains down on the biggest Asian Games in a riot of colour, foot-tapping music and a cultural extravaganza at the Haixinsha Island on the Pearl River here on Saturday.
If the opening ceremony held at the same riverside venue on November 12 was high on technical wizardry, the closing was a heart-touching display of warmth by the people of this South China city whose infrastructure has improved remendously as a result of hosting the Games which saw India record their best-ever medal haul till date.
The closing ceremony was also used by the Games hosts to present cultural segments representing the different regions of the continent, including South Asia in which Indian singers Ravi Tripathi and Tanya Gupta enthralled the capacity crowd.
The prelude to the official part of the ceremony was punctuated by dance of Qiling (a legendary animal symbolising good luck) to celebrate the success of the Games that was followed by an exhibition of acrobatics and dance.
Performers staged “Dragon drunk on the Pearl River”, “Painting of Toy figuring in Emotion” and “Wind of the Yao Ethnic Group” dances while flashbacks of the Asian Games actions were shown on sail-shaped screens.