2014 Commonwealth Games opening ceremony

Parade of Nations

The ceremony was directed by David Zolkwer [1] and included the 2014 Commonwealth Games Parade of Nations where 71 athletes, bearing the flags of their respective nations and territories, led their national delegations as they paraded into the stadium. The games were formally opened by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. She referred to the Commonwealth's "shared ideals and ambitions" and the "bonds that unite" its members.[2]

During the Parade of Nations at the 2014 Commonwealth Games opening ceremony, held on 23 July 2014, 71 athletes bearing the flags of their respective nations lead their national delegations as they paraded into Celtic Park in the host city of Glasgow, Scotland. Each team was led out by a Scottish Terrier, wearing a jacket bearing the name of the country, followed by the flag bearer for that nation.[3]

As the host of the last games, India entered first, followed by the rest of the Asian countries competing. Following this was Oceania, Africa, the Caribbean, the Americas and finally Europe. The Scotland team entered last, representing the host nation. In all cases nations entered in alphabetic order of their country names in English within their regions (besides India and Scotland).[4]

In honouring the victims of the Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 tragedy that occurred the week before the opening ceremony, the Malaysian delegation was led by eight athletes in Malaysia Airlines cabin crew uniform while the remaining athletes and officials wore black armbands, and the national flag was at half mast. A minute's silence was also observed.[5]

Countries and flagbearers

Below is a list of parading countries and their announced flag bearer, in the same order as the parade. This is sortable by country name, flag bearer's name, or flag bearer's sport. Names are given in the form officially designated by the CGF. The first team to enter the stadium was India, host of the 2010 Commonwealth Games, maintaining the tradition of the immediate previous host nation entering first.[6]

Order Nation Flag bearer Sport
1 India (IND)Vijay Kumar[7]Shooting
2 Bangladesh (BAN)Iqbal Islam[4]Shooting
3 Brunei (BRU)Muhammad Imaadi Abd Aziz[4]Cycling
4 Malaysia (MAS)Fatehah Mustapa[8]Cycling
5 Maldives (MDV)Hassan Saaid[9]Athletics
6 Pakistan (PAK)Azhar Hussain[4]Wrestling
7 Singapore (SIN)Lim Heem Wei[10]Gymnastics
8 Sri Lanka (SRI)Sudesh Peiris[4]Weightlifting
9 Australia (AUS)Anna Meares[11]Cycling
10 Cook Islands (COK)Patricia Taea[4]Athletics
11 Fiji (FIJ)Litia Tikoisuva[12]Lawn bowls
12 Kiribati (KIR)David Katoatau[13]Weightlifting
13 Nauru (NRU)Itte Detenamo[4]Weightlifting
14 New Zealand (NZL)Valerie Adams[14]Athletics
15 Niue (NIU)Hina Reriti[4]Lawn bowls
16 Norfolk Island (NFI)John Christian[4]Lawn bowls
17 Papua New Guinea (PNG)Steven Kari[15]Weightlifting
18 Samoa (SAM)Ele Opeloge[13]Weightlifting
19 Solomon Islands (SOL)Jenly Tegu Wini[4]Weightlifting
20 Tonga (TGA)Uaine Fa Jr[16]Boxing
21 Tuvalu (TUV)Lapua Lapua[4]Weightlifting
22 Vanuatu (VAN)Yoshua Shing[4]Table tennis
23 Botswana (BOT)Nigel Amos[4]Athletics
24 Cameroon (CMR)Vanetius Njuh[4]Weightlifting
25 Ghana (GHA)Janet Amponsah[4]Athletics
26 Kenya (KEN)Mercy Obiero[4]Weightlifting
27 Lesotho (LES)Mokhotho Moroke[4]Boxing
28 Malawi (MAW)Mataya Tsoyo[4]Cycling
29 Mauritius (MRI)Kate Foo Kune[4]Badminton
30 Mozambique (MOZ)Kurt Couto[4]Athletics
31 Namibia (NAM)Helalia Johannes[4]Athletics
32 Nigeria (NGR)Maryam Usman[4]Weightlifting
33 Rwanda (RWA)Theogene Hakizimana[4]Powerlifting
34 Seychelles (SEY)Clementina Agricole[4]Weightlifting
35 Sierra Leone (SLE)James Fayla[4]Squash
36 South Africa (RSA)Cecil Afrika[17]Rugby sevens
37 Swaziland (SWZ)Phumlile Ndzinisa[4]Athletics
38 Tanzania (TAN)Seleman Salum Kidunda[4]Boxing
39 Uganda (UGA)Charles Ssekyaaya[4]Weightlifting
40 Zambia (ZAM)Punza Mathews[4]Judo
41 Anguilla (AIA)Rechelle Meade[4]Athletics
42 Antigua and Barbuda (ANT)Daniel Bailey[4]Athletics
43 Bahamas (BAH)Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace[18]Swimming
44 Barbados (BAR)Shane Brathwaite[4]Athletics
45 British Virgin Islands (IVB)Chantel Malone[4]Athletics
46 Cayman Islands (CAY)Michele Smith[4]Cycling
47 Dominica (DMA)Brendan Williams[4]Athletics
48 Grenada (GRN)Kirani James[4]Athletics
49 Jamaica (JAM)Warren Weir[4]Athletics
50 Montserrat (MNT)Julius Morris[4]Athletics
51 Saint Kitts and Nevis (SKN)Antoine Adams[4]Athletics
52 Saint Lucia (LCA)Levern Spencer[4]Athletics
53 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG)Kineke Alexander[4]Athletics
54 Trinidad and Tobago (TRI)Keshorn Walcott[4]Athletics
55 Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI)Angelo Garland[4]Athletics
56 Belize (BIZ)Katy SealyAthletics
57 Bermuda (BER)Micah Franklin[19]Squash
58 Canada (CAN)Susan Nattrass[20]Shooting
59 Falkland Islands (FAI)Mike Brownlee[4]Badminton
60 Guyana (GUY)Geron Williams[4]Cycling
61 Saint Helena (SHN)Simon Henry[4]Shooting
62 Cyprus (CYP)Georgios Achilleos[4]Shooting
63 England (ENG)Nick Matthew[21]Squash
64 Gibraltar (GIB)Chris Walker[22]Triathlon
65 Guernsey (GUE)Chris Simpson[23]Squash
66 Isle of Man (IOM)Tim Kneale[24]Shooting
67 Jersey (JER)Steve Le Couilliard[25]Shooting
68 Malta (MLT)Kevin Arthur Moore[26]Athletics
69 Northern Ireland (NIR)Martyn Irvine[27]Cycling
70 Wales (WAL)Francesca Jones[28]Gymnastics
71 Scotland (SCO)Euan Burton[29]Judo

Programme

The programme, which included about 2,000 performers, featured Karen Dunbar, John Barrowman, Amy Macdonald, Rod Stewart, Susan Boyle, Nicola Benedetti, Julie Fowlis, Pumeza Matshikiza, Eric Whitacre and the National Youth Choir of Scotland, as well as a message from the International Space Station. The ceremony began with a countdown and a recorded video message from Scottish actor Ewan McGregor, explaining the partnership between the Games and UNICEF.[30]

Following the arrival of the Queen there was a flypast by the Red Arrows display team. The venue featured the largest LED video screen in Europe,[31] supplied by Sports Technology.[32] Scotland's then First Minister Alex Salmond welcomed the participants and spectators, and introduced a moment of silence in memory of the Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 disaster.

The final part of the Queen's Baton Relay was run by 32 Scottish volunteers nominated for giving their time to developing the nation's youth through sport. The baton was then passed to Sir Chris Hoy, who delivered it to President of the Commonwealth Games Federation Prince Imran and the Queen. The display of the message concealed within the baton was delayed by a difficulty in opening the device.[33]

The Games were launched in partnership with UNICEF, to save and change children’s lives. The unique partnership aimed "to use the power of sport to reach every child in Scotland and benefit children in every Commonwealth nation and territory."[34]

Broadcast

The ceremony was broadcast by BBC One, and was introduced by Gary Lineker, Hazel Irvine, Clare Balding and Huw Edwards.[35] The estimated worldwide television audience was one billion,[33] with 9 million in the UK.[36]

gollark: How would you actually do that? What traits would make soldiers significantly better, and are actually mostly genetic (and easily editable)?
gollark: I think that would imply that you actually mix the genes (and fairly evenly).
gollark: You probably wouldn't *actually* make your catpeople cat/human hybrids, you'd just give them a few cat traits.
gollark: We really do live in a society.
gollark: We spliced in some lizard genes, so they regrow.

References
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  2. Duncanson, Hilary (23 July 2014). "Queen tells of 'shared ideals' at Commonwealth Games opening ceremony". Irish Independent. Independent News & Media. Press Association. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  3. "Scottie dogs 'steal the show' at Commonwealth Games". ITV News. 24 July 2014. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  4. Butler, Nick; Osborne, Paul (23 July 2014). "Commonwealth Games: The Opening Ceremony from Celtic Park". Insidethegames. Glasgow, Scotland. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  5. "Malaysia pays tribute at Commonwealth Games". The Star Online.
  6. "Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games: India leads opening ceremony parade". India Today. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  7. "Vijay Kumar named India's flag-bearer at CWG". ibnlive.in.com/. 21 July 2014. Retrieved 21 July 2014.
  8. "Fatehah picked as Malaysian flag bearer for Glasgow Commonwealth Games". Baik Bike.com. 10 July 2014. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  9. "Saaid appointed as Maldives' flag bearer at Commonwealth Games". sun.mv/. 15 July 2014. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
  10. Yong Teck, Lim (2 July 2014). "Dual-contingent flag presentation ceremony mark start of Singapore's 2014 Commonwealth Games and YOG journey". Red Sports. Retrieved 2 July 2014.
  11. Horne, Ben (22 July 2014). "Meares picked as flag bearer for Games". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  12. Kumar, Arin (13 July 2014). "Tikoisuva's our flag bearer". Fiji Times. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  13. "Pacific flag bearers overwhelmed by Glasgow Games". Radio Australia. 24 July 2014. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  14. Shannon, Kris (23 July 2014). "Adams named as NZ flag bearer". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  15. Naime, Quintina (14 July 2014). "Steven Kari named Flag Bearer at Glasgow Games". pngloop.com/. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 14 July 2014.
  16. "Tonga team for Commonwealth Games 2014". Matangi. Nuku'alofa, Tonga. 16 July 2014. Retrieved 16 July 2014.
  17. "Afrika named SA flag bearer". Sport24. 16 July 2014. Retrieved 16 July 2014.
  18. Stubbs, Brent (23 July 2014). "Flying The Flag". Bahamas Tribune. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  19. Wright, Stephen (22 July 2014). "Franklin chosen as Games flag bearer". Royal Gazette. Glasgow, Scotland. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  20. "Susan Nattrass named Commonwealth Games flag-bearer". CBC Sports. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: CBC. 26 June 2014. Retrieved 26 June 2014.
  21. "Nick Matthew to be Team England's flag bearer at Commonwealth Games". The Guardian. 22 July 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  22. Shephard, John (14 July 2014). "Team Gibraltar Finally named". vox.gi/. Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 14 July 2014.
  23. "Chris Simpson to carry Guernsey flag at Glasgow 2014 ceremony". BBC. 22 July 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  24. "Glasgow 2014: Shooter 'proud' to be Isle of Man flag bearer". BBC. 23 July 2014. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  25. "Glasgow 2014: Steve Le Couilliard 'overwhelmed' to be flag bearer". BBC News. BBC. 2 July 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2014.
  26. "Kevin Arthur Moore flag bearer for Malta at Commonwealth Games opening ceremony". Times of Malta. 22 July 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  27. "Track cyclist Martyn Irvine named Northern Ireland flag bearer". Glasgow Evening Times. 23 July 2014. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  28. Griffiths, Gareth (22 July 2014). "Commonwealth Games 2014: Gymnast Frankie Jones named as Team Wales opening ceremony flag bearer". walesonline.co.uk/. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  29. McGinty, Stephen (21 July 2014). "Euan Burton named as Commonwealth Games flag bearer". The Scotsman. Retrieved 21 July 2014.
  31. Adam Withnall (19 March 2014). "Commonwealth Games 2014 – on your marks: Glasgow ready for opening ceremony as Scotland promises to show 'what we're made of' – Commonwealth Games – Sport". The Independent. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  32. "Sports Technology to showcase all the big-screen action of Glasgow 2014 | Glasgow 2014 – Commonwealth Games". Glasgow 2014. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  33. Commonwealth Games. "Commonwealth Games 2014: the Queen laughs off baton hitch". Telegraph. Retrieved 14 July 2014.
  34. "Unicef | Glasgow 2014 – Commonwealth Games". Glasgow 2014. Retrieved 14 July 2014.
  35. "BBC One – Commonwealth Games, Glasgow 2014, Opening Ceremony". bbc.co.uk. 23 July 2014. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  36. "Commonwealth Games 2014 opening ceremony scores 7.6m on BBC One – TV News". Digital Spy. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
External media
Images
Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games opening ceremony in pictures, The Mirror Newspaper
Video
Opening Ceremony – Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games, CGF's Official Channel
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