A record 4,500 athletes from 71 nations will compete in 16 sports in the biggest Commonwealth Games yet staged, getting under way here next week.
Fifty years after hosting the Olympic Games, Australia's second-biggest city of 3.5 million people, will host the fourth Empire/Commonwealth Games in Australia following those in Sydney (1938), Perth (1962) and Brisbane (1982).
Fighting criticisms of relevancy in a fast-evolving world, the 18th edition of the Commonwealth Games will once again lean heavily on its moniker as 'the Friendly Games' differentiating itself from the multi-faceted Olympics.
The sporting powers of the British Commonwealth - Australia, England and Canada - will again dominate the medals with New Zealand, South Africa, India, Scotland and Kenya expected to figure prominently on the medals tally.
Yet the Commonwealth Family embraces its tiny member states as well with diverse nations such as Gambia, Lesotho, Swaziland, Caymen Islands, St Kitts & Nevis, Maldives, Brunei, Vanuatu, Niue, Kiribati and Falkland Islands coming to the big party.
Australia is splashing out over one billion dollars (740 million USD) to ensure the success of the Melbourne Games, with funding from the Australian government, the Victorian state government and corporate sponsorship.
A VIP list of Queen Elizabeth II, Nelson Mandela and British Prime Minister Tony Blair head a list of 400 world leaders, celebrities, business chiefs and sporting greats invited to attend.
The Games will be seen by an estimated global audience of up to 1.5 billion people each day, including the prime American market for the first time.
The Victorian state government expects some 100,000 Australian and overseas visitors to come to the Games, which has necessitated a major security operation.
The federal government will devote 85 million dollars (65 million USD) to security. Fighter jets and helicopters will circle Melbourne's skies at the opening and closing ceremonies and a 75-kilometre (45-mile) no-fly zone will help shield the city from terrorist attacks. There will also be an exclusion zone around the athletes' village.
More than 1,200 troops will join 13,000 police, 5,000 private security guards and squads of counter-terrorism experts to protect the Games. Major infrastructure work has been carried out to deliver sporting venues and the athletes' village.
The 100,000-capacity Melbourne Cricket Ground, major venue of the 1956 Olympics, has been renovated with new stands and the installation of an athletics track at a total cost of 434 million dollars (320 million USD).
The Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre has been expanded at a cost of 55 million dollars (40 million USD) and the athletes' village to accommodate 6,000 competitors and officials has been constructed on a 27-hectare (66-acre) site.
A giant tent seating 1,800 athletes at a time has been put up at the village, which will be open around the clock, serving 20,000 meals daily.
The village has 155 permanent houses, 68 apartments, 14 townhouses and 115 temporary cabins plus its own police station and post office.
Organisers have released new tickets for some previously "sold-out" high-profile events - gymnastics, netball, basketball and athletics finals.
No tickets to the popular diving, swimming, synchronised swimming or track cycling sessions have been returned. About 1.03 million tickets have been sold so far.
Ten days out from the start there were more than 16,000 empty seats for the opening ceremony. A row also erupted over whether 'God Save the Queen' should be played in tribute to Queen Elizabeth, who will be at the ceremony to officially declare the Games open.
Organisers had resisted calls, backed by monarchist Australian Prime Minister John Howard, for the British national anthem to be played.
They said they had the backing of Buckingham Palace to play only Advance Australia Fair at the opening.
But it was later revealed that eight bars of the Queen's anthem would be included in a musical tribute as a compromise.
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