Japan's Naoko Takahashi, who captured the hearts of the nation by winning the women's marathon at the Sydney Olympics last fall, lit the cauldron amid a dazzling laser display at the opening ceremony of the East Asian Games on Saturday.
Takahashi ignited "Tomodachi no Hi," or "Flame of Friendship" at the Osaka Dome to open the nine-day event as roughly 3,000 athletes and officials representing 10 national Olympic committees gather for competition in 15 sports.
Prince Takamado, a nephew of the Emperor, officially declared the games open, and 20 students of the Canadian Academy in Kobe, dressed in the native costumes of each participating country, presented the games flag, which was raised by local Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts.