Thrifty is the name of the new National Games
In keeping with Beijing's austerity policy, the 12th National Games will be far less lavish, but sports minister says drugs will not be tolerated
Organisers promised to present the most cost-effective National Games yet when the 12th edition of the event is unveiled at the Olympic Sports Centre in Shenyang, Liaoning province, today.
For the first time since 1987 in Guangzhou, the opening ceremony will take place in sunlight without any fireworks display. Attending will be President Xi Jinping, with an expected crowd of 60,000. The budget has been slashed from more than 90 million yuan (HK$113 million) to a mere 9 million yuan.
There have been some big adjustments in the format of this National Games as this is in line with the central government's policy of practising thrift management in every aspect
The last major Games in China, the 2011 Shenzhen World University Games, lavished more than 300 million yuan on its opening ceremony.
There will be no large-scale cultural performances which have characterised other previous major multi-sport events on the mainland, and the entire opening ceremony will last for only two hours.
"There have been some big adjustments in the format of this National Games as this is in line with the central government's policy of practising thrift management in every aspect," said Vice Sports Minister Xiao Tian yesterday.
"Not only in the form of expenditure but also in other related activities such as the torch relay and receptions, we have scaled down the size of the Games. The number of events and participants has also been revised."
There are 31 events, including the 28 sports to be contested at the 2016 Olympic Games, compared with 33 in Shandong four years ago. The number of athletes is 9,770, 1,220 less than in Shandong. Even the number of approved journalists has been cut by over 1,000 to 3,000.