In Pictures - Asian Games Closing Ceremony
The Asian Games closing ceremony took place on Sunday, October 8, at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Stadium in the People’s Republic of China. After two weeks of enthralling action across various disciplines, the closing ceremony was indicated to show love and respect among athletes of participating nations for one other.
Performers along with the athletes were in focus during the closing ceremony. The performance of the night came with the children’s choir singing along with the depiction of the sparkling water to show the beauty of jiagnan.
It followed with AI-generated 1000 memory flowers of lotus and osmanthus on the side screen. The visual included the blooming flower in the hands of a little girl, gesturing it to give away to all the participating athletes in the Asian Games 2023. It illustrated the Chinese tradition of plucking a flower to a departing friend.
Veteran Indian hockey player PR Sreejesh was India's flagbearer at the Asian Games closing ceremony.
A mesmeric video clip was played to highlight the highs of the 19th edition of the quadrennial showpiece. Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra’s whopping throw of 88.88m and the men’s 4x400 relay team’s gold were part of the montage of dynamic heights achieved by India in this edition.
In the ritual handover ceremony, the Hangzhou Mayor Yao Gaoyuan handed over the first Asian Games torch, the first Asian Games flag, and the Olympic Council of Asian Games flag to Nakata Hideo, the deputy mayor of Nagoya city (Japan), which will be the host of the next Asian Games edition in 2026.
You can check out the photos of the Asian Games 2023 closing ceremony here:-
India script history at Asian Games 2023
India recorded 107 medals across 22 sporting events in the recently concluded Hangzhou Asian Games 2023. This is the best-ever haul of the Indian contingent, surpassing their previous tally of 70 medals at Jakarta in 2018.
The three-figure medals included 28 golds, 38 silvers, and 41 bronzes with athletics being the most successful contingent, bringing home 29 medals. The Indian shooters bettered their record of 14 medals in Doha (2006) to finish with 22 medals this time.
The men and women cricket and kabaddi teams doubled the joy with gold in each of the team events. Meanwhile, Indian archers bagged nine medals with the compound archers on the song as they clinched all five gold medals available.
Unfamiliar sports like Sepak Takraw, Bridge, Canoe, and Wushu returned with a medal each, while Sailing (3), Roller Skating (2), and Equestrian didn't miss the opportunity to hog the limelight.