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The Asian Games Are Open with More Athletes than the Summer Olympics and some Unfamiliar Sports
On Saturday, Emperor Naruhito officially opened the Asian Games at Nagoya City Stadium, with a ceremony themed "Harmonic Heart Beat" featuring Empress Masako and Olympic Council of Asia president Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani.
Nagoya, Japan's third-largest city, hosts the 16-day event for at least 11,000 athletes, with organizers housing 17,000 participants in hotels, a cruise ship, and wooden containers to manage logistics.
Two incidents made headlines on Friday: organizers played the North Korean national anthem during a South Korea match, and Taiwanese sports minister Lee Yang was temporarily barred from a welcoming ceremony before being allowed to participate.
Competition started on September 10, well before the official opening ceremony, as organizers added mixed martial arts, padel, and teqball to traditional Olympic disciplines like soccer and swimming, creating scheduling pressure.
Host Japan leads the delegation with 933 athletes, while China follows with over 800; organizers prioritized budget-conscious planning after Japan previously spent $13 billion on the Tokyo Olympics.