ANDREW HANCEL , Observer staff reporter
Grabbed by the colour and the energy, some of the world's leading cricket commentators believe the West Indies have delivered the best ever opening for an ICC Cricket World Cup.
The ninth ICC Cricket World Cup - the first to be held in the Caribbean - was declared officially open two nights ago in Florence Hall, Trelawny.
Dubbed 'Caribbean energy', the Opening Ceremony mirrored a West Indian party - gradually building momentum, before getting to a prolonged climax.
The three-hour affair was so captivating that the capacity crowd remained until the end, revelling in the historic moment.
"This is by far the best. This is world class. I got a call from a friend of mine who is in Barbados. who just called to say 'I'm so proud to be a West Indian tonight'. She was in tears.," said veteran West Indian cricket commentator, Tony Cozier.
"Everybody looks at it and says 'we can't do it'. They started on time and finished on time. and they got everything in," Cozier added.
The hard-talking, but highly respected former West Indies fastbowler, Michael Holding agreed.
Said Holding: "It is the best Opening Ceremony I've seen. I saw the opening ceremony in England and watched some of the opening ceremony on TV in South Africa. But to compare this to what happened in England is chalk and cheese. This is far, far superior."
Second vice-president of CONCACAF, Cpt Horace Burrell, believed that the Caribbean has delivered, adding that while the FIFA World Cup evolves on a grander scale, Sunday's opening ceremony was of the highest standard.
"Sitting there in the stands really made me feel proud, and it just goes to show what we can do as a region. I really can't find adjectives to describe the feeling, but I think it was really, really tremendous.
"World Cup football covers a wider spectrum. but nonetheless, I believe the performance here was really next to none. I have looked at the performances of opening ceremonies of other World Cup finals and I have to say, even though I might sound biased, that this is certainly the most magnificent that I've seen," says the Jamaican, who has been largely credited for taking Jamaica to its first and only senior FIFA World Cup in 1998.
As expected, the ceremony had a lot of Caribbean entertainers, with the likes of David Rudder, Sean Paul, Shaggy, Third World, Beres Hammond and the legendary reggae icon Jimmy Cliff, who had the distinction of closing the night's show.
Harpal Singh Bedi, special correspondent, United News of India, told the Observer that credit must go to the organisers, headed by Martin Lewis.
He said that he and his Indian colleagues were overwhelmed by the music, though they struggled to understand the language.
"This is the best one. It started slowly, but it picked up. Compare to other opening ceremonies, this is the most lavish. it lived up to expectation, no doubt about that," said Bedi, who says this is his fifth Cricket World Cup.
"Usually what happen, people lose interest when the opening ceremony starts and suddenly people start leaving. But with this one nobody left the stadium. It goes to the credit of the organisers. it was just fascinating," stated the Indian from New Delhi, who has also covered five Olympics.
Headley 'Delmar' Samuels, one of the world's most recognised cricket photographers, has captured several World Cups through the eyes of his camera lenses, and he too thought the opening event was the best.
"It is the best," beamed the West Indian photographer, "we just co-ordinate everything and get it right."
Ever since the region was awarded the 2007 Cricket World Cup, there have been many critics who questioned the Caribbean's capacity to deliver.
Having proved those cynics wrong on Sunday night, the opening ceremony's organisers deserve credit for a tremendous achievement, said Brian Murgatroyd, ICC Media and Communications manager.
"When I first saw the rehearsal last night (Saturday) it was the colour of the costume, the variety of colours, the vibrancy of them that grabbed me. The number of people at the back of the North Stand. it was like a city at the back and it was just incredible," said Murgatroyd from inside the media centre, adding that "I'm not going to disagree" with those who called it the best ever opening ceremony.
Meanwhile, Cozier said the standard set by the Opening Ceremony should be duplicated for all Caribbean events.
"So many times we let standards fall. but we can do it and this is a standard that should be set for every show, in every country in the West Indies, every time," Cozier said.
"This is just a starter," said Holding. "You have the main course and the dessert to come.
"I'm anticipating all good things. I hope that everything will go smoothly, I'll expect that you'll have hiccups, because you have no world tournament or such a huge occasion that doesn't have hiccups, but I hope the hiccups will be minor and everything will be dandy by the 29th of April," Holding said.
"World class, by far the best that we have ever had in World Cup, as far as Opening Ceremony is concerned," reiterated Cozier.
For More : http://www.jamaicaobserver.com
Grabbed by the colour and the energy, some of the world's leading cricket commentators believe the West Indies have delivered the best ever opening for an ICC Cricket World Cup.
The ninth ICC Cricket World Cup - the first to be held in the Caribbean - was declared officially open two nights ago in Florence Hall, Trelawny.
Dubbed 'Caribbean energy', the Opening Ceremony mirrored a West Indian party - gradually building momentum, before getting to a prolonged climax.
The three-hour affair was so captivating that the capacity crowd remained until the end, revelling in the historic moment.
"This is by far the best. This is world class. I got a call from a friend of mine who is in Barbados. who just called to say 'I'm so proud to be a West Indian tonight'. She was in tears.," said veteran West Indian cricket commentator, Tony Cozier.
"Everybody looks at it and says 'we can't do it'. They started on time and finished on time. and they got everything in," Cozier added.
The hard-talking, but highly respected former West Indies fastbowler, Michael Holding agreed.
Said Holding: "It is the best Opening Ceremony I've seen. I saw the opening ceremony in England and watched some of the opening ceremony on TV in South Africa. But to compare this to what happened in England is chalk and cheese. This is far, far superior."
Second vice-president of CONCACAF, Cpt Horace Burrell, believed that the Caribbean has delivered, adding that while the FIFA World Cup evolves on a grander scale, Sunday's opening ceremony was of the highest standard.
"Sitting there in the stands really made me feel proud, and it just goes to show what we can do as a region. I really can't find adjectives to describe the feeling, but I think it was really, really tremendous.
"World Cup football covers a wider spectrum. but nonetheless, I believe the performance here was really next to none. I have looked at the performances of opening ceremonies of other World Cup finals and I have to say, even though I might sound biased, that this is certainly the most magnificent that I've seen," says the Jamaican, who has been largely credited for taking Jamaica to its first and only senior FIFA World Cup in 1998.
As expected, the ceremony had a lot of Caribbean entertainers, with the likes of David Rudder, Sean Paul, Shaggy, Third World, Beres Hammond and the legendary reggae icon Jimmy Cliff, who had the distinction of closing the night's show.
Harpal Singh Bedi, special correspondent, United News of India, told the Observer that credit must go to the organisers, headed by Martin Lewis.
He said that he and his Indian colleagues were overwhelmed by the music, though they struggled to understand the language.
"This is the best one. It started slowly, but it picked up. Compare to other opening ceremonies, this is the most lavish. it lived up to expectation, no doubt about that," said Bedi, who says this is his fifth Cricket World Cup.
"Usually what happen, people lose interest when the opening ceremony starts and suddenly people start leaving. But with this one nobody left the stadium. It goes to the credit of the organisers. it was just fascinating," stated the Indian from New Delhi, who has also covered five Olympics.
Headley 'Delmar' Samuels, one of the world's most recognised cricket photographers, has captured several World Cups through the eyes of his camera lenses, and he too thought the opening event was the best.
"It is the best," beamed the West Indian photographer, "we just co-ordinate everything and get it right."
Ever since the region was awarded the 2007 Cricket World Cup, there have been many critics who questioned the Caribbean's capacity to deliver.
Having proved those cynics wrong on Sunday night, the opening ceremony's organisers deserve credit for a tremendous achievement, said Brian Murgatroyd, ICC Media and Communications manager.
"When I first saw the rehearsal last night (Saturday) it was the colour of the costume, the variety of colours, the vibrancy of them that grabbed me. The number of people at the back of the North Stand. it was like a city at the back and it was just incredible," said Murgatroyd from inside the media centre, adding that "I'm not going to disagree" with those who called it the best ever opening ceremony.
Meanwhile, Cozier said the standard set by the Opening Ceremony should be duplicated for all Caribbean events.
"So many times we let standards fall. but we can do it and this is a standard that should be set for every show, in every country in the West Indies, every time," Cozier said.
"This is just a starter," said Holding. "You have the main course and the dessert to come.
"I'm anticipating all good things. I hope that everything will go smoothly, I'll expect that you'll have hiccups, because you have no world tournament or such a huge occasion that doesn't have hiccups, but I hope the hiccups will be minor and everything will be dandy by the 29th of April," Holding said.
"World class, by far the best that we have ever had in World Cup, as far as Opening Ceremony is concerned," reiterated Cozier.
For More : http://www.jamaicaobserver.com
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