The 20th Asian Games opened in Nagoya, Japan, on Sept. 19. Over the next 16 days, through Oct. 4, nearly 11,000 athletes will compete for 469 sets of medals across 43 sports. It is Japan's third Asian Games after Tokyo (1958) and Hiroshima (1994), and the first the country has hosted in 32 years.
The opening ceremony took place at Paloma Mizuho Stadium and lasted about two hours. Reuters reported that the opening minutes were restrained before the show turned into a celebration of light, music and dance. The Tokyo Olympics five years ago were held in empty stands because of the pandemic, but this time the stadium was full.
Emperor Naruhito declared the Games open. He watched the parade of 45 countries and territories alongside International Olympic Committee President Kirsty Coventry.
The show's theme was "Heartbeat." Performers in red and white costumes spelled out the word "Welcome" while violinist Taro Hakase played live.
The climax was the lighting of the cauldron. Shigenobu Murofushi, a five-time Asian Games champion and former hammer thrower, climbed the steps to it with his son Koji, the 2004 Olympic champion. Before that, the torch relay had passed through 40 municipalities in Aichi Prefecture and 16 wards of Nagoya.
Uzbekistan team: nearly 400 athletes in 42 sports
The team arrived with one of its largest-ever delegations: 396 athletes (224 men and 172 women) competing in 42 sports, 36 of them Olympic disciplines. A send-off ceremony was held Sept. 12 at the Olympic and Paralympic Glory Museum in Tashkent.
At the parade in Nagoya, the flag was carried by world boxing champion Turabek Khabibullaev and Asian Games fencing champion Guliston Perdebayeva.
The goal is clear: to improve on the result at Hangzhou 2023, where the team won 22 gold, 18 silver and 31 bronze medals to finish fifth overall.
The team will make its Asian Games debut in beach volleyball, volleyball, sailing, squash and mixed martial arts. Berths for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics will be up for grabs in several sports, including archery, field hockey, tennis, surfing, triathlon and squash.
Some competitions began earlier. In football, the youth team played two matches and has already reached the quarterfinals. Head coach Ravshan Khaydarov's squad beat the Philippines 5-1 and Kuwait 2-0 in the group stage.
Para athletes will compete later. The Para Asian Games run Oct. 18–24, with 153 athletes entered in 11 sports. For the first time, the country will field teams in wheelchair fencing, boccia and para archery. Together with the Asian Games squad, the total delegation comes to 549 people.
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