President Bidya Devi Bhandari declared open the 13th South Asian Games (SAG), the mega sport’s event. Member Secretary of NSC Ramesh Silwal said that the event was grand and one of its kind in the history of SAG.

The 13th South Asian Games (SAG) has been inaugurated on Sunday evening amidst a posh function at the Dasarath Stadium, Tripureshwore. The newly reconstructed Dasarath Stadium has been decorated colorfully for the ceremony.

The opening ceremony will last for 3 hours and 14 minutes. The ceremony has featured cultural performances, traditional dances and national songs of seven participating nations.

The ceremony has also presented dazzled fireworks and other acts based on modern light and sound technologies.

About 15,000 artists are performing in the ceremony. National Sports Council has also arranged to live stream the inaugural ceremony in big screen in 25 different locations.

Although Nepal is hosting SAG for the third time, it is the first time that the games are being held in three different cities, where, the capital city will be hosting 21 disciples, Pokhara eight and Janakpur one match.

The inauguration ceremony of the 13th South Asian Games (SAG), a multi-sport event, has started at the newly reconstructed Dasharath Stadium in Kathmandu.

The SAG will be held until December 10 in three cities — Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Janakpur — among the athletes from the South Asian countries.

Sportsmen from Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Maldives, Bhutan and Sri Lanka are competing in 26 different sports in the 13th SAG.

During the 10-day games, more than 2,000 athletes will compete for 1119 medals, including 319 gold, in 26 sports disciplines.

According to organizing committee, 15,000 spectators attended the opening ceremony and thousands of security personnel including volunteers have been mobilized to work round the clock to maintain the SAG decorum and make the ceremony a spectacular success.

In an attempt to promote Visit Nepal Year 2020, the arrangement has been made to view the live coverage of 13th SAG from more than 15 countries.

Photo courtesy: Bishnu Rimal Twitter and Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Yogesh Bhattarai's Facebook wall