Chinese Net users praised the opening ceremony of the Rio Olympic Games as creative, enthusiastic and caring of global issues, after a spate of negative news had lowered their expectations. [Special coverage]
The Rio Games began on Saturday with nearly 57 million Chinese Net users watching the opening ceremony on the video-stream website Tencent as of the press time and thousands seeing it live on China Central Television on Saturday.
The topic with hashtag "the opening ceremony of the Rio Games" on Sina Weibo had been viewed 220 million times, and more than 60,000 Net users posted comments.
Many Chinese Net users said they were astonished by the ceremony characterized by Brazilian elements and spoke highly of attention given to global issues, including global warming and forest degradation.
"The ceremony made me touch the inside of Brazil and feel the enthusiasm, humor and creativity of South Americans through their samba dance and music," Net user "MISS YH" posted.
Others agreed with Chinese media's comments that Brazilians, who are fond of singing and dancing, turned the opening ceremony into a big party.
The four-hour opening ceremony had a soaring feel as the stadium in this seaside city pulsed with lights, fireworks, circus-like acrobatics and a samba sing-along that embraced the nation's partying style, according to the Washington Post.
And some also compared Rio's opening ceremony to those in Beijing in 2008 and London in 2012.
"The Rio ceremony may not have been as glamorous as Beijing 2008's or as elegant as London 2012's. But the city has exerted efforts to impress the world with its passion and creativity on a low budget," a Net user commented.
The ceremony cost an estimated $21 million, about half the cost of the London 2012 version. About 5,000 volunteers, 300 artistic producers and more than 200 dancers participated in the ceremony, the Xinhua News Agency reported on Saturday.
"After being haunted by negative news for months, including postponed constructions and security problems, Rio won the Chinese back by a successful and creative opening ceremony," He Hui, professor at the School of International Journalism and Communication of Beijing Foreign Studies University told the Global Times on Sunday.
"Brazil combined their romance with social issues, which appealed to Chinese especially the youth," said He.
However, the opening ceremony's success doesn't guarantee a successful Games, said He, adding that "Brazil still needs to tighten security and pay attention to the health of the athletes in the next half month," He said.
Chinese athletes, journalists and tourists were reportedly robbed, according to China's foreign ministry.
