Seven promising young British athletes lit the Olympic cauldron early
Saturday, capping the Games' festive opening ceremony in east London.The torch, which minutes earlier had been on a boat driven by football star David Beckham down the River Thames, had been carried into the stadium by five-time Olympic gold medalist Steve Redgrave.
The retired rower then
passed it to the young athletes, who lit part of the outer rim of the
torch, setting off a domino effect as fire methodically engulfed the
cauldron. The small flames eventually rose and converged into the sky at
the stadium.
A short time earlier,
Queen Elizabeth II formally pronounced the Olympics open for business,
saying, "I declare open the Games of London, celebrating the 30th
Olympiad of the modern era."
Organizers had said they
expected a billion people worldwide to watch the opening ceremony --
which was created by Danny Boyle, best known for directing the
Oscar-winning film "Slumdog Millionaire" -- on television.
Tens of thousands more
congregated in "fan zones" around the British capital to watch the
festivities on big screens, their enthusiasm hardly diminished by
overcast sky and sporadic showers.
The event opened with a
scene dubbed "Green and Pleasant," after a line from poet William Blake.
It featured an idyllic view of a British countryside. Rolling hills,
fields and rivers -- complete with picnicking families, sports being
played on a village green and farmyard animals -- made up the elaborate
set.
Hundreds of volunteers
dressed in period costumes walked, danced and otherwise performed as
music played. The set soon transformed into one featuring factories,
recalling the Industrial Revolution, including large smokestacks
emerging from below.
After a short film
featuring Daniel Craig, the latest actor to play cinematic British spy
James Bond, and none other than Queen Elizabeth II herself, the next
performance paid tribute to Britain's National Health Service and
children's literature.
J.K. Rowling, author of
the best-selling Harry Potter books, kicked off the scene -- which
featured, among others, the evil Voldemort from her series and magical
nanny Mary Poppins.
Next came a performance
of the iconic song from "Chariots of Fire," a tale about two British
Olympians from 1924 that was lightened up by slapstick comedian Mr.
Bean. Then came a showcase for pop songs from the Beatles to the Rolling
Stones to Frankie Goes to Hollywood to David Bowie, which was followed
by a short live performance by rapper Dizzee Rascal.
There was also a special
shout-out to Tim Berners-Lee, a London native who is credited with
inventing the World Wide Web. His words, "This is for everyone" at one
point lit up a part of the stands for all to see.
Just over one hour in, the Olympic athletes finally made their way into the stadium led, per tradition, by the Greek delegation.
That was followed by
another performance featuring bicyclists with glowing butterfly wings
going around the stadium, one of whom soared into the air.
Several dignitaries
escorted the Olympic flag as it entered the stadium, among them U.N.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and legendary American boxer Muhammad Ali.
Sebastian Coe, chairman
of the London Games organizing committee and a four-time Olympic
medalist, then promised, "London 2012 will inspire a generation."
"In the next two weeks,
we will show all that has made London one of the greatest cities in the
world," Coe said. "Let us determine all of us, all over the world, that
London 2012 will see the very best of us."
International Olympic
Committee chief Jacques Rogge noted the history being made with these
Games -- the first competition in which every delegation had female
athletes and the first time any city has hosted the Olympics three
times.
"In a sense, the Olympic Games are coming home tonight," he said.
Excitement has been brewing in and around London for years, and it's been especially palpable in recent days.
Katie Lawrence, a
resident of the U.S. state of Georgia who holds dual U.S.-British
citizenship, told CNN that she was hugely excited to be in London to
watch the sporting extravaganza.
"I love the Olympic
Games, I always have, always will. I'm always torn as to which team to
root for, but I have no shame in rooting for both USA and GB," said
Lawrence, who saw the 1996 Games in Atlanta as a child. "I cannot wait
to be immersed in all of the excitement and bustle that the Games
bring."
CNN iReporter Kevin Dunscombe was "very proud" of London as the host city.
"I really felt the buzz
of the Olympics when I walked through Trafalgar Square on my way home
last night," he said Friday. "The atmosphere was really electric and
this is before the Games have actually begun!"
British newspaper
headlines heralded Friday as the start of something truly special. "Get
the party started," reads the Telegraph, while the Times of London hails
"The world in one city."
The Guardian strikes a more reflective note as London prepared to host the Games, saying, "Time to find out who we are."
Records already broken and ticket-holders warned
Some 10,500 athletes are set to take part in the Games, the British government said.
Some of them competed in
advance of Friday night's formal kickoff, including members of multiple
men's and women's football squads. Earlier Friday, for instance, all
128 competing archers took part in a preliminary round at Lord's Cricket
Ground in London to determine seedings for team and individual
competitions.
Three South Korean
archers took the top three seeds in the men's individual round, with the
winner, Im Dong-hyun -- who is legally classified as blind -- setting a
world record in the process, according to the official website for the
Games.
Hundreds of people
hoping to attend that event, however, were turned away after apparently
being sold fake tickets and because of confusion about whether the event
was open to the public, UK media reported.
The London organizing committee said tickets had neither been advertised nor sold.
"We think we have made
it very clear that this is not a free event, like the road races or
marathon, which have been advertised as free events," the committee said
in a statement.
"This is a ranking round
and there is no spectator access at all. We are dealing with this at
the venue, along with some people who have turned up with fake tickets
purchased from a fraudulent website."
People are urged to "be
extremely cautious and vigilant when attempting to buy tickets and only
purchase from an official source," the statement says.
U.S. politics becomes part of the story in London
Dozens of dignitaries
from around the world attended Friday night's opening ceremony. They
included U.S. first lady Michelle Obama, who met with members of Team
USA at a breakfast Friday morning at the U.S. Olympic training facility.
But it was her husband's presidential challenger this fall, Mitt Romney, who was making headlines.
News reports picked up
on the verbal to-and-fro between British Prime Minister David Cameron
and the Republican U.S. presidential candidate, who appeared to question
London's readiness while on a trip to England and then appeared to
backtrack.
"You know it's hard to
know just how well it will turn out," Romney said in an interview with
NBC News on Wednesday evening. "There are a few things that were
disconcerting. The stories about the private security firm not having
enough people, the supposed strike of the immigration and customs
officials -- that obviously is not something which is encouraging."
A day later, in what
sounded like a jab at Romney's own stewardship of the 2002 Olympics in
Salt Lake City, Cameron appeared to draw a contrast between staging the
Games in London versus Utah.
"We are holding an
Olympic Games in one of the busiest, most active, bustling cities
anywhere in the world. Of course it's easier if you hold an Olympic
Games in the middle of nowhere," he said.
After meeting with
Cameron, Romney praised then British preparations for the Games. He then
sidestepped a question as to whether he intended to criticize the 2012
Olympic organizers in his initial comments, saying he expected the Games
to be "highly successful."