Bangladeshi athlete Arnab Sharar could not hide the fact he was amazed at the opening ceremony of the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou.
“We are really amazed as China hosts the Asian Games very nicely,” said the Bangladeshi athlete, adding that “The services and the opening ceremony and the facilities are the best. The most impressive part of the event is the technology that China has used for the athletes, for the opening ceremony.”
It’s true that the opening ceremony of the touted grandest edition of the Asian Games on September 23 has an extraordinary infusion of cutting-edge technology and cultural elements. For example, the inaugural digital torch ignition topped all impressive performances from the opening ceremony with a digital human figure running across Qiantang River on the way to igniting the cauldron with Olympic swimming champion Wang Shun.
The eastern Chinese city is using the Asian Games as a window to showcase not only the country’s cutting-edge technologies, such as virtual reality and artificial intelligence, but also its rich cultural heritage and green development.
China Media Group released a documentary via CGTN on Monday to showcase Hangzhou’s meaningful cultural heritage, strong technological innovation and urban green development. The documentary will be released globally in 68 languages.
Titled “Hangzhou: From the past into the future”, the documentary focuses on the experiences of Chinese and foreigners who live and work in the city.
Chen Jialing, a renowned artist hailing from the well-known Shanghai School of Painting, admitted he wanted to depict the “Ten Scenes of West Lake,” though doing so is generally thought to be very challenging.
Born in Hangzhou City, which is home to the UNESCO World Heritage Site, the West Lake, Chen said that his hometown combines natural beauty, cultural richness and human warmth.
Chen also said each of the ten scenes is different. “Take ‘Leifeng Pagoda in Evening Glow’ for example, the dominant tone is fiery red. It symbolizes the boundless beauty of the setting sun, a yearning for life, and that feeling of defying the passage of time,” said the artist.
Nikk Mitchel, a Canadian “Western Maker”, runs a video technology company that develops VR technology at the dream town in Yuhang District, Hangzhou City. The town is a home to startups related to technological innovation.
A lover of Peking Opera, Nikk created a VR Peking Opera film Mu Guiying Takes Command, which he said allows people to get a more extreme viewing experience than the front row of the theater no matter where they are.