LIVE: 2019 University Games Napoli
This is about to start!
Six minutes, six minutes.
The Tale about Napoles will be recited by actress Iaia Forte and the scenary will come to life.
Fifty percent of the seats have been filled. The sun begins to fall in Naples. The president of Italy will be arriving shortly.
Follow the University Games 2019 Universiade Naples here with us!
Music is on. In about one hour the opening ceremony will take place.
Doors have opened
The doors open to the public. With less than two hours to go, all delegations are starting to arrive to the Stadio San Paolo.
In addition to the already announced presence of Italy President Sergio Mattarella and the President of the Chamber Roberto Fico, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Enzo Moavero Milanesi, the Minister of Education, Marco Bussetti, and the Under-Secretaries to the Presidency of the Council Giancarlo Giorgetti, Simone Valente, Giuseppina Castiello and Carlo Sibilia.
No tickets
If you are in Naples and want to assist, please do not come. Tickets selling service will not be provided at the box-offices.
Here we go! The torch has arrived in Naples and tonight will be the protagonist of an extraordinary event.
Are you ready for the opening ceremony? Will you experience the live emotion of San Paolo or will you enjoy it comfortably here with us on VAVEL?
Riviviamo il passaggio della torcia 🔥 della 30a #Universiade per le strade di Napoli🍕🎵☕️⛵️⚽️!#Napoli2019#ToBeUnique@ComuneNapoli @Reg_Campania @FISU pic.twitter.com/CihGw9nBxF
— Napoli 2019 Summer Universiade (@Napoli2019_ita) July 3, 2019
Attracted by the siren’s singing, the athletes of the sport delegations from all over the world will enter the Stadium of San Paolo and welcomed in the symbolic Gulf. The flags form a pattern in front of the stage and the athletes fill the great U with lights and colours and then take their place following the indications.
A hyper technological postcard projected into the future.A hyper technological postcard projected into the future.
A hyper technological postcard projected into the future.
The San Paolo stadium is transformed into a great gulf. The gulf and the Vesuvius, water and fire, represent the main elements of the stage set. The seating area for the athletes is set up in the shape of a big U, symbol of the values which will be showed at the Games.
The restyling work for the Universiade Napoli 2019 costed about 22 million euros and was financed by Regione Campania. It included the replacement of the seats and the makeover of athletics track, lighting and sound system.
San Paolo is the third largest stadium in Italy, after Stadio Giuseppe Meazza in Milan and Stadio Olimpico in Rome. The facility was inaugurated on December 6, 1959, and the first official football match to be hosted was Napoli Vs. Juventus (2-1) with over 87,000 spectators.
The sports venue was then renovated on the occasion of the 1980 UEFA European Football Championships and subsequently for the 1990 FIFA World Cup.
Born as “Stadio del Sole”, the Neapolitan stadium later took the name of the apostle Paolo who, according to the Holy Scriptures, would have arrived in Fuorigrotta during a journey from Malta to Rome.
The opening ceremony of the Summer Universiade in Napoli will be hosted at the glorious Stadio San Paolo. The ceremony is scheduled at 11:05 am ET.
Welcome to VAVEL.com’s coverage of the 2019 University Games Opening Ceremony!
My name is Alan Nunez and I’ll be your host for this event. We will provide you with stream, updates, and news as it happens here on VAVEL.