The Emblem of the 16th Asian Games

The official emblem of the 16th Asian Games was unveiled in a launching ceremony held at the Memorial Hall of Sun Yet-sen in Guangzhou, Guangdong yesterday (November 26) night.

The grand outdoor ceremony lasted for about half an hour, and was sponsored by the Guangzhou Asian Games Organizing Committee (GAGOC).

The grand ceremony was held at the Memorial Hall of Sun Yet-sen.

Five top officials co-launched the official emblem of the 16th Asian Games, which will be held in Guangzhou in 2010. They are Vice Director General of Chinese State General Administration of Sports Wang Jun, Vice President of Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) Timothy Fok, Vice Governor of Guangdong Province Lin Musheng, Secretary of Guangzhou Committee of Communist Party of China Zhu Xiaodan, and Guangzhou Mayor Zhang Guangning.

Mr.Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, OCA President, gave his congratulations for the emblem launch in a recorded show on screen.

Cambodian Consul General Mr.Op Sisawada, Singapore Consul General Mr.Ang Chay Chuan, Acting Indonesian Consul General Mr.Mochammad M.Suwito also attended the ceremony, as well as the Representatives and officials from American Consulate General,British Consulate General,Australian Consulate General,Malaysian Consulate General,and Philippine Consulate General.

Audience of some 1,600 attended the ceremony, including senior officials of China's State General Administration of Sports, Guangdong provincial and Guangzhou municipal governments, consuls' couples of some Asian countries' consulates in Guangzhou, athletes celebrities and representatives from large Chinese and foreign companies and joint ventures.
 
Before the launching 45 local girls sang a Cantonese folk song 'Bright Moonbeam'. They were dressed in unified clothes printed with 45 countries and regions' flag, which symbolized 45 countries and regions participating in Asian Games.
 
The official emblem has come out of the public solicitation and experts' assessment and judgment for about five months. It incorporates Asian Olympic spirit and Chinese Lingnan (mainly of Guangdong) cultural elements.

The ceremony concluded in the chorus of 'Meet in 2010'.

The event was broadcasted live on CCTV, Guangdong TV and Guangzhou TV.

Artwork of Official Emblem of the 16th Asian Games Guangzhou 2010

Designers: ZHANG Qiang (Idea Development/Creation and designing)
ZHANG Yi, WU Zhonghao, LI Chenjia (co-designing)
From Zhongjia (Guangzhou) Design Co.,Ltd.

Concept Interpretation of the Emblem of the 16th Asian Games

The Five-goat Statue standing in Yue Xiu Park is regarded as the symbol of Guangzhou city.

The design of the emblem is originated from a beautiful legend. Ages go, the farm lands in Guangzhou ran deserted and the people were suffering from famine. The people could do nothing but pray to the heaven for luck. Moved by their piety, five immortals descended from the heaven, riding on goats with wool of various colors and holding rice ears in their hands. The immortals gave the rice ears to the local people and prayed this land ¡°free from famine¡±. Afterwards, the five immortals disappeared into the sky. Five goats were left behind and turned into stones. From then on, Guangzhou has been bestowed with bumper harvest of grain every year and known as the City of Goats and the City of Rice Ear. Today, the Five-goat Statue standing in Yue Xiu Park is regarded as the symbol of Guangzhou city.

In the traditional Chinese culture, the "goat" is an auspicious animal that brings luck. In the ancient Chinese language, the character yang(goat) is identical to the character xiang(luck). The character mei(beauty) is composed of the characters yang(goat) and da(big), revealing the traditional Chinese aesthetics of regarding the "goat" and "big" as "beauty". In the Chinese language, many words and characters associated with the meaning of beauty are often related to the character yang(goat). The concept of the goat is embodied in the emblem design, expressing Guangzhou citizens' readiness to embrace the 2010 Asian Games and to present the best of Guangzhou to the people of Asia and across the world.

The soft and uplifting lines in the emblem design outlines a contour of the Five Goats that is identical to the shape of a torch. The design of the emblem, a combination of the concrete and the abstract, of grace and ease, manifests the ever-burning sacred flame of the Asian Games. The emblem represents a perfect symbol of Guangzhou, the best wishes of its people, and the dynamics of the Asian Games.

Editor: Donald