Doha: A poignant cultural extravaganza depicting the enchanting Arabic stories of genies and sultans complete with breath-taking visual effects and spectacular fireworks brought the curtains down on the XVth Asian Games in Doha on Friday night.
The President of the Olympic Council of Asia Sheik Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah formally declared the Games closed bringing an end to 15 days of intense competitions in what was billed as the "Games of your life".
Dazzling fireworks lit up the chilly evening sky as the Games, which were held amidst a spirit of friendship and bonhomie among the thousands of athletes from 46 countries, were formally closed at the fully packed Khalifa stadium and Qatar bid adieu to thousands of its guests.
India finished the Games with a total medal haul of 54 and like all other competitors soaked the atmosphere at the Khalifa as the athletes from all countries mingled with each other and posed for photographs to capture these wonderful moments for posterity.
After a pre-show entertainment, the actual closing ceremony function started with the ceremonial arrival of the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani who took his seat in the Tribune of Honour stage.
The orchestra and the 40-strong Doha Asian Games choir then played the national anthem of Qatar.
A melancholy, wistful but beautiful 'taqsim', a free flow musical instrumentation improvisation in Islamic music, then introduced the audience to the world of the closing ceremony - an Arabian fantasy inspired by famous characters and incidents from the tales of "A Thousand and one nights".
The presentation of stories such as 'Sheherazade', 'Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves', 'Sinbad the Sailor' and 'Aladdin and his Marvellous Lamp' with stunning visual effects kept the capacity audience spell-bound for the entire duration of the closing ceremony.
After the stories, it was time for the athletes to enter the stadium.
Representing the unity of the Asian Games family, the athletes entered the arena together rather than as teams as they did during the opening ceremony.
The Athlete Flag bearers passed their flags to the Avenue Flag bearers and joined the other athletes.
Korean swimmer Park Tae Hwan was then crowned as the Most Valued Player of the Games to a thunderous applause from the crowd.
After the presentation, the OCA President gave a speech and declared the Games close, setting the ball rolling for the next Games to be held in Guangzhou, the capital of South China's Guangdong Province, in 2010.
The OCA flag was then handed over to the 2010 hosts.
The people of Guangzhou presented a cultural performance as an introduction to their city, country and culture.
A spectacular fireworks finale brought the closing ceremony to an end.
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