【英语国际】印度举行英联邦运动会盛大开幕式

India staged the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony Sunday night, a technical and pyrotechnic spectacular amid tight security that will go some way to dispelling the image of a nation that was chaotic in its preparations for the big athletic event.

The roughly 2 1/2-hour ceremony at the main Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium featured the usual parade of athletes and speeches from Commonwealth officials and other dignitaries.

But its highlights were the culture, dance and music of India -- not Bollywood but traditional -- and an $8 million balloon called an aerostat that rose from the stadium floor and hung suspended around roof level, beaming images to accompany the thousands of performers below.

The ceremony, which appeared to go off flawlessly, sought to draw a curtain over New Delhi's preparations for the Games.

Problems included delays, poor construction, filthy accommodations in the athletes' Games Village and an official attitude among local organizers that nothing was amiss.

Prince Charles declared the Games open as the representative of Queen Elizabeth II, who is the head of the Commonwealth, which includes nations of the former British Empire.

The Games begin Monday and run through Oct. 14.

'The ceremony has been beautiful,' said Vivian Maguire of Scotland, whose daughter is competing in field hockey.

The show included segments on yoga, the 'chinar' shade tree, traditional dancing and drumming, a tribute to Mohandas Gandhi and a performance by Oscar-winning composer A.R. Rahman, who wrote an anthem for the Games.

The city center was in lockdown for the event, with stores other than restaurants and pharmacies in the neighborhoods around the stadium ordered closed all day Sunday.

Armed police guarded the approach roads.

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开幕式上，一个太空船造型的巨型热气球悬浮在主体育场上方。印度在周日晚间举行了英联邦运动会开幕式，在严密的安保气氛中，进行了融汇高科技元素和烟火的盛大表演，这些表演一定程度上有助于打消印度在筹备此次运动会期间给人留下的糟糕形象。

开幕式在尼赫鲁体育场(Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium)举行，大约持续了两个半小时，开幕式上有运动员入场式和英联邦官员及其他重要人物的讲话。

但开幕式的亮点是印度文化、舞蹈和音乐，它们不是宝莱坞（Bollywood）风格，而是印度传统形式，开幕式上引人瞩目的还有一个造价800万美元、名为航空器的气球，它从体育场的地面上升起，此后悬浮在体育场上空，它伴随着下面几千人的表演打出各种形像。

这个看上去完美的开幕式，是在试图掩盖印度对英联邦运动会糟糕的准备工作。

准备工作中的问题包括工程延迟、建筑质量低劣、运动员村污秽的住宿条件，以及赛会组织者那种不肯正视问题的官方态度。

查尔斯王子（Prince Charles）代表英国女王伊莉沙白二世（Queen Elizabeth II）宣布运动会开幕。英国女王是英联邦的领袖。英联邦包括原先大英帝国的各成员国。

英联邦运动会于周一开始，10月14日结束。

苏格兰的马奎尔（Vivian Maguire）说，开幕式非常漂亮。她女儿将参加典棍球比赛。

开幕式的表演包括瑜伽、传统舞蹈和鼓乐，向圣雄甘地（Mohandas Gandhi）致敬，以及奥斯卡最佳作曲奖获得者拉曼（A.R. Rahman）的表演，他为此次运动会创作了会歌。

新德里市中心因此次盛会而戒严，周日尼赫鲁体育场周围除饭馆和药店外的商店全天关门。

武装警察把守着通向体育场的各条道路。