Greeks remain silent about opening ceremony

Shhhh! Athens has a secret.

As organizers hustle to get everything ready for the opening festivities of the Aug. 13-29 Olympics, they are also going to extremes to keep details of the ceremony a mystery. In a country known for having the gift for gab this is no small feat. But there are clues the ceremony will celebrate Greece and its heritage.

“We will see what Greece has achieved through its art history, through sculpture, mosaic and painting. We will see a fairy tale about the essence of the history of the country,” said Dimitris Papaioannou, artistic director of the ceremonies.

He added, “The look of Greece will be there and Greece has the look of sea and rocks. With some scenery changes you find in there the beauty of our country.”

Organizers will use about 8,000 volunteers for the ceremonies and about another 2,000 will be used as support staff.

Has Papaioannou dreamed up a set of flowing water symbolizing the Aegean Sea? Perhaps.

Construction crews have dug a large hole in the middle of the 75,000-seat stadium. Workers at the site said it was a massive elevator that reports say will pump out water into the infield of the stadium.

Recently, large truckloads of what appeared to be sand were seen being dumped in the infield, covering the area between the track and the hole.

At the main Olympic stadium, despite the delays in building its steel-and-glass roof, crews have crisscrossed two cables on both sides that span the width of the venue. They are suspended from two columns on each end of the stadium. The effect is a giant X over the venue. It was confirmed that they would be used during the opening ceremony, perhaps to hang the Olympic cauldron.

The Associated Press also has obtained documents that describe the Olympic flame’s cauldron as a “spindle-shaped” structure 100 feet long and 5 feet at its maximum width. It would be connected to the base by a hinge, suggesting it could move.

The cauldron is being designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, who has also designed the roof and the upgrading of the entire complex, otherwise known as OAKA.

In another sign, the London-based Greek fashion designer Sophia Kokosalaki has been commissioned to create the costumes. Although her designs are cut in a modern way, she uses lots of drapery like those seen on Greek statues from the Golden Age during the 400s B.C.

Volleyball

Olympic volleyball champion Serbia-Montenegro will face Poland when it begins defense of its men’s title under the country’s new name.

Serbia-Montenegro, which competed four years ago as Yugoslavia, was placed in Pool A with Tunisia, Argentina, Poland, France and Greece.

Pool B is made up of the United States, Brazil, Italy, the Netherlands, Russia and Australia.

For the Aug. 14-22 women’s tournament, defending champion Cuba was placed in Pool B with the United States, China, the Dominican Republic, Germany and Russia.

In Pool A are Greece, South Korea, Japan, Brazil, Italy and Kenya.

Fencing

American Mariel Zagunis, one of the top 10 women’s saber fencers in the world, will compete in the Athens Olympics after the Nigerian Olympic Committee declined to have its fencer participate in the competition.

The U.S. Fencing Association received word from FIE – fencing’s international governing body – that the Nigerians refused their spot and that Zagunis, from Portland, Ore., would be allowed to compete.