Sydney opening gets the big thumbs-up

Add as a preferred source on Google

Sydney: The Sydney Olympics spectacular opening ceremony was given the big thumbs-up on Saturday and made an instant overnight star of a 13-year-old schoolgirl who soared above the stadium.

Juan Antonio Samaranch declared it to be the best he had seen in his 20 years as Olympic supremo.

"Our finest hour," declared 'The Daily Telegraph'. "Night of our lives," was the banner headline in 'The Australian'.

"You bloody beauty. We fair dinkum. Knocked 'em dead on that one," said the 'Sydney Morning Herald'.

Australians were spared the cultural cringe of seeing old stereotypes being pedalled to the world. They were acutely embarrassed when inflatable kangaroos on bicycles were paraded at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.

But the organisers suffered the fright of their lives when the cauldron that was to lift the Olympic flame high above Stadium Australia stuck for three heart-stopping minutes.

Ric Birch, mastermind behind the ceremony, said, "I'd have to say in the end although the cauldron certainly stopped and caused us some extraordinary adrenaline rushes at the time, in the end the engineering team did recover from it."

Cathy Freeman, clearly moved at being given the ultimate accolade, "walked on water" to light a ring of fire that then rose around her in a waterfall cascade.

Adored

Birch, whose show attracted a vast worldwide audience, said Freeman adored the experience. "She told a friend that she felt she was on a gas cooker and it was like 'Honey I Shrunk the Kids'."

Aborigines applauded Olympic officials for picking 400 metre world champion Freeman -- one of their most potent symbols in the fight for equal rights -- to light the flame.

The leader of Australia's top Aboriginal body, Geoff Clarke, said the International Olympic Committee had taught the Australian government a lesson in respecting Aboriginal people and their ancient culture.

Samaranch went out of his way in his speech of welcome to praise Aborigines.

Equally relieved were transport bosses after teething troubles in the lead-up to the Games -- 110,000 people travelled trouble-free to the giant stadium.

"It is almost a relief that it has actually started," a transport authority spokesman said.

Nikki Webster, the schoolgirl chosen to play the heroine and soar above the stadium on high wires, said, "When I flew last night, I wasn't scared.

"It was amazing to be up there 25 metres off the ground and so much fun," she added.

Webster, the focus of a string of media interviews, said she hoped the worldwide exposure she had received "pushes along my dream of being a pop star and an actress."



(c) Reuters Limited.