Finally, the much awaited and the much talked about Commonwealth Games 2010 got underway at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium amongst tight security. As expected the opening ceremony was a grand affair and will be remembered for long to come. The Queen was not able to attend the opening ceremony personally. Therefore, the Prince of Wales – Prince Charles, read out the Queen’s message to all those present.

About 7,500 security personnel patrolled the 60,000 odd spectators and the VIPs and the VVIPs to see to it that there is no untoward incident and any attempt to disrupt the games. The opening ceremony can be fittingly rechristened as ‘a cultural extravaganza’.


There were many distinguished guests present at the Commonwealth Games 2010. The prominent of them were the Prime Minister Mr. Manmohan Singh along with his wife, the President Pratibha Patil with her husband, UPA Chairperson Mrs. Sonia Gandhi, Chief Minister of Delhi Mrs. Sheila Dixit from the Indian side and Prince Charles and many more loads of foreign dignitaries and diplomats. The opening ceremony happened to be once in a lifetime opportunity for the spectators.

The main attraction of the ceremony was the introduction of the teams. In the Commonwealth Games 2010 a total of 71 countries are taking part in as many as 17 different disciplines. As per the custom, Australia started out. It is not alphabetically related to Australia. But Australia happens to be the previous host country. The previous host country always makes the first appearance in any Commonwealth Games, customarily.


After Australia, the rest of the teams followed in the alphabetical order. Each team was greeted with the same zest and enthusiasm. The enthusiasm was quite prominent for two countries. First it was England and a visibly satisfied looked Prince Charles wore a smile as the England contingent passed by. Another country to get the same warm response surprisingly was Pakistan.

According to the custom, the host country, India, marched by at the very last. The stadium went abuzz with zeal and energy. It was a very energetic welcome for the Indian contingent as even the other guest countries were seen smiling, clapping, shooting pictures and shooting with cameras too. All the action has been captured to last an eternity. Shooter Abhinav Bindra was the flag bearer for India.

The cultural extravaganza that the Commonwealth Games 2010 is, it showcased the rich heritage that India holds. Each contingent was headed by a beautiful-looking ‘leader’. The ‘leader’ was in a traditional Indian attire of designer saree. These ladies were then followed by the flag bearer and the rest of the contingent.

Mr. Jacques Rogge, who is the chief of the International Olympic Committee, said that India has a golden opportunity to bid for the next Olympics. He said the Olympics are bigger and are more intricate. He further said that, playing host to the Commonwealth Games 2010 has given India a good chance for the same.

The next Commonwealth Games will be held after four years in 2014.