2000 Summer Olympics opening ceremony

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• published: 10 May 2016
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The opening ceremony of the 2000 Summer Olympic games took place on Friday 15 September in Stadium Australia. As mandated by the Olympic Charter, the proceedings combined the formal and ceremonial opening of this international sporting event, including welcoming speeches, hoisting of the flags and the parade of athletes, with an artistic spectacle to showcase the host nation’s culture and history. For Sydney 2000, the Games were formally opened by Governor-General Sir William Deane. The ceremony was described by IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch as the most beautiful ceremony the world has ever seen. It also represented everything Australian, from sea creatures and flora/fauna to lawn mowers and other Australian cultural icons. The Opening Ceremony had a cast of 12,687 people who took part in the ceremony. Consistent with normal major production management together with co-ordination of the ceremony with over 12,000 performers, the Sydney Symphony mimed the music on the night. This was to insure against the forecast rain and windy conditions. The music was pre-recorded in the preceding weeks under studio conditions ensuring the flawless quality of the music broadcast around the world on this night. Hosted by Channel Seven's Sports Commentator David Fordham and Channel Seven's newsreader Chris Bath, while seven months pregnant with her first child, live on stage in the stadium. Featured various performances, including 'Waltzing Matilda' with John Williamson. The Opening Ceremony began with a tribute to the heritage of the Australian Stock Horse, with the arrival of a lone rider, Steve Jefferys, whose Australian Stock Horse, Ammo, reared. Steve Jefferys then cracked his stockwhip and a further 120 riders and their Stock Horses entered the Stadium and performed intricate steps, including forming the five Olympic Rings, to the music of Bruce Rowland who composed a special Olympics version of the main theme which he had composed for the 1982 film The Man from Snowy River. A giant banner, painted by Sydney artist Ken Done, said 'G'Day' to the world. The Australian National Anthem, Advance Australia Fair, was sung by both Human Nature and Julie Anthony, accompanied by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, after the arrival of the Governor General Sir William Deane, The Prime Minister John Howard and the President of the IOC Juan Antonio Samaranch. This segment celebrates Australia's affinity with the sea with the stadium floor being turned into a beach setting. Nikki Webster arrives in beachwear and bask in the light. She seemed to fall asleep on the beach and drifts off into a dream. The performers represented the sea and the various aquatic fauna appear and move around the arena floor. This was a tribute to the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Australia. Nikki Webster was then hoisted up in the air by over head wires and swam with the sea creatures. Other swimmers were also present, being coached by Australian swimming coach Laurie Lawrence. Elena Kats-Chernin composed the music for this section which was performed by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and Sydney Children's Choir. The awakening segment commemorated Australia's Aboriginal past, which dates back thousands of years. A special welcome was made to countries competing at the Games. An Aboriginal elder guided Nikki Webster through the segment. Narration for the segment was by Australian Indigenous actor Ernie Dingo. Video Empire produces videos read aloud. Use the information in this video at your own risk. We cannot always guarantee accuracy. This video uses material from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000_Summer_Olympics_opening_ceremony, licensed with CC Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0. This video is licensed with CC Attribution-Share-Alike 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/ In order to adapt this content it is required to comply with the license terms. Image licensing information is available via: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000_Summer_Olympics_opening_ceremony