In front of over 100,000 jubilant fans, Prime Minister Narendra Modi formally opened the 36th National Games on Thursday evening during a dazzling opening ceremony.
Swimming champion from Gujarat, Maana Patel, brought the symbolic Torch of Unity onto the stadium and gave it to the Prime Minister in a nod to Olympic tradition with a contemporary twist.
The Olympic Torch was set up on the podium for augmented reality lighting in front of several current and former sports icons, including World Championship medalist Anju Bobby George, Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra, Olympic medalists PV Sindhu, Ravi Dahiya, Mirabai Chanu, and Gagan Narang, as well as former national hockey captain and new HI chief Dilip Tirkey.
