Monday, 09 October, 2006 - Wreathed in smoke from the firework display, the title of the Torch Relay video is written in lightsUnder the patronage of HH Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani, the Heir Apparent of the State of Qatar, the 15th Asian Games Doha 2006 Flame was ignited at the Doha Golf Club on Sunday 8 October.
The ceremony marked the start of the Torch Relay’s 50,000km journey through Asia and the Middle East before it returns to the Qatari capital to light the Cauldron at the Opening Ceremony on 1 December.
The Torch is setting off into the world. When it returns, Doha will stage the Games of your Life.
As the audience of VIPs awaited the lighting of the Flame, a column of 45 young future leaders marched with clipped precision onto the stage.
Standing to attention, they remained motionless as the Flame of Hospitality, a film illustrating Qatari grace and hospitality, played to the crowd.
In it, a family camped in the desert guides lost travellers to safety through the lighting of a fire – a message mirroring Qatar’s welcome to hundreds of thousands of athletes, officials, spectators and workers for the Games.
Before the lighting of the Flame, the stage curtain dropped amid a shower of sparks from dozens of Catherine wheels to reveal the words ‘Flame of Hospitality’ in giant red lights.
The Torch, its shape inspired by Qatar’s national symbol the Arabian Oryx, and in the maroon and white of the national flag, was in turn lit from the Flame, which will travel through 15 countries and regions before returning for the Opening Ceremony at the 50,000-capacity Khalifa Stadium on 1 December.
Speaking at a press conference after the ceremony, Husain Al-Musallam, Director General of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), said: “I would like to thank the Organising Committee for this excellent event today.
“It has really made the OCA proud that the Games came here to Doha. It is the first time there has been this ceremony and it has set an excellent standard for the Games.”
More than 3,000 Torchbearers will spend 55 days bearing the Flame of the Games before its return, as it travels through Asia and the Middle East by land, sea and air.
Sunday marked the Torch Relay’s departure from Doha. When it is next seen in the city, the 15th Asian Games will be here.
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