At a grand event, PM Modi proclaims the 36th National Games open.

A mind-blowing performance was set in motion earlier when the PM virtually opened the Swarnim Gujarat Sports Unity using augmented reality.

In front of over 100,000 jubilant fans, Prime Minister Narendra Modi formally opened the 36th National Games during a dazzling opening ceremony that evening.

Maana Patel, a swimming champion from Gujarat, paid homage to Olympic history by carrying the symbolic Torch of Unity onto the stadium and presenting it to the Prime Minister.

The Olympic medalists PV Sindhu, Ravi Dahiya, Mirabai Chanu, and Gagan Narang, as well as former national hockey captain and new HI chief Dilip Tirkey, watched and cheered on the Prime Minister as he set the Torch on the podium so that it could be lit by augmented reality. Neeraj Chopra, the Olympic champion, and Neeraj Bobby George were also present.

When the prime minister stood to speak, the stadium erupted in a roar as loud as a thousand lions, a sign of his sustained support in the state.