Brunei was excluded from the Olympic Games after it did not register any athletes for competition, the International Olympic Committee said on Friday.

"It is a great shame and very sad for the athletes who lose out because of the decision by their team not to register them," IOC spokeswoman Emmanuelle Moreau said in a statement. "The IOC tried up until the last minute, midday Friday, to have them register, but to no avail."

The decision meant only 204 countries would take part in the Games' opening ceremony parade.

Ex-gymnast and three-time gold medal winner Li Ning will light the Olympic cauldron, the official Xinhua News Agency said on Friday.

Li Ning, China's best-known gymnast of the 1980s, is also founder of sports clothes manufacturer Li Ning.

The 29th summer Olympic Games opened in Beijing on Friday night. The following are some facts and figures about the opening ceremony.

THE VENUE

The opening was held in the National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest, in the Olympic Green in northern Beijing.

The stadium was jointly designed by Herzog & de Meuron Design Office, and China Architecture Design & Research Group and ARUP. Its construction began on Dec. 24, 2003, and completed on June 30, 2008. Altogether 45,000 tonnes of steel was used to build its framework.

The stadium's seating capacity is 91,000, including 11,000 temporary seats. The floor space is 258,000 square meters.

GROUND FACILITIES

A major elevating platform at the center is 20 meters in diameter, weighing about 400 tonnes, and can reach 11.4 meters high at a speed of zero to 12 meters per minute.

Two moving lids on the stage serve as a roof.

A 36 by 22 meters LED screen is installed on the plates.

On the south and north sides are 30 complementary platforms, with each 3-meter-wide and 3-meter-long.

When the two lids move toward the center, the complementary platforms will rise and make up the stage.

Two sets of 22-meter-long LED scroll painting were installed, with a diameter of 22 meters.

With LED images shown on it, the scroll painting can stretch 147 meters long.

ABOVE-STAGE FACILITIES

Ten steel ropes are hung above the stage, weighing 40 tonnes in all and with a total length of 55 kilometers.

Among the 31 wire devices, 16 sets can carry a load of 300 kilograms each, with a load of 100 kilograms for each of the other 15. All can move at 3 meters per second and can function at the same time.

One hundred jumping facilities with a load capacity of 80 kilograms each are set under the rim of the roof edge, which can move at 3 meters per second and be operated simultaneously.

LED SCREEN ON THE GROUND

A 147 by 22 meters LED screen is laid at the center. Approximately 44,000 colorful LED beads are embedded with a distance of 600 millimeters between each two.

FIREWORKS CELEBRATION

-- 287 points on the top of National Stadium

-- 27 positions in the central area of National Stadium

-- 12 positions in the Olympic Green

-- 29 positions on the axis of the city

-- 4 places in other urban areas

MUSIC

A total of 110 minutes of music was created by 18 composers for the opening ceremony.

LIGHTING

Altogether 2,583 special lights are used and lighting equipment weighing more than 300 tonnes has been installed. Electricity load for lighting totals 6,440 kilowatt.

COSTUMES

A total of 15,153 sets of costumes in 47 styles.

REHEARSAL

Some performances have been rehearsed for 13 months. Volunteers began their first mass rehearsal in March 2008.

American bantamweight Gary Russell Jr. will miss the Beijing Olympics after collapsing while struggling to make his weight, US team coach Dan Campbell told reporters on Friday. The 20-year-old Russell was removed from the US team's list of competitors before Friday's draw for the tournament, which starts on Saturday. "Medically, he's been cleared, he's now resting," Campbell said. "He's extremely depressed." After a workout in a last attempt to make his weight class's 54-kg limit, Russell was found unconscious by his room mate Luis Yanez early on Friday, Campbell said. Russell was rehydrated by medical staff at the athletes' village and checks showed his condition was not serious but he was ruled not healthy enough to take part in Friday's mandatory weigh-in. "It's been extremely hot and that probably played a part," Campbell said. "We'd noticed in training he was not sweating the way he should. "When trying to make weight, these kids sometimes cut corners. We believe he did not increase his fluid intake the way we had told him to." Twice a national champion and a bronze medallist at the 2005 world championships, Russell was regarded as a medal prospect. Russell, who has five younger brothers all named Gary Russell, four of whom are boxers, had been struggling to make his weight for months. His withdrawal leaves the US team, who have won a record 48 Olympic boxing titles but just one gold from the last two Games, with eight fighters in the draw, their smallest squad since the 1948 Olympics in London. They still have several title contenders, however, among them world champions Rau'shee Warren and Demetrius Andrade. Russell follows out Britain's top hope, world lightweight champion Frankie Gavin, who withdrew on Thursday for failing to make his weight. All the boxers competing at the Olympics were required to make weight on Friday in order to be entered in the draw, which featured 284 boxers after Gavin and Russell pulled out.

China celebrates its ancient past and modern power when the Olympics open on Friday, looking to put criticism behind it as world leaders arrived in Beijing. The opening ceremony is the culmination of seven years of hard work that reshaped the capital, and sets the seal on a sustained economic boom that has seen China emerge as a new superpower. Guests in the head-turning "Bird's Nest" Olympic stadium will include US President George W Bush, who flew in straight after making some of his bluntest criticism on human rights. Displaying its new economic clout, China has invested $43 billion on the Games. Some $100 million, twice the 2004 Athens bill, has gone on "big bang" opening and closing ceremonies. The elements, though, have proved stubbornly hard to master. Authorities have closed factories and pulled millions of cars off the road, but smog and haze enveloped the capital on Friday morning -- obscuring views of the futuristic skyline. It all kicks off at 8 p.m. on the eighth day of the eighth month -- the number symbolises fortune here -- before an estimated global audience of one billion.

A little known Islamist group has threatened attacks against the Olympic Games in China and urged Muslims to keep away from any activities linked to its events, two US-based terrorism monitoring firms said on Thursday. "The Turkistan Islamic Party (TIP) issued a new threat ... against the Beijing Olympics," the SITE Intelligence Group reported. A similar report was carried by IntelCenter. "Do not stay on the same bus, on the same train, on the same plane, in the same buildings, or any place the Chinese are," SITE quoted TIP as saying in a video titled "Call to the Global Muslim Nation". In July, Chinese authorities denied claims by the group that it was behind a series of bombings ahead of the Olympics. The TIP had released a video threatening the Games and claiming responsibility for deadly bus blasts in Shanghai and in Kunming, capital of the southwestern province of Yunnan. In the new video dated Aug. 1, the speaker "describes the barbarism exhibited by China towards Muslims and East Turkistan, justifying the jihad that is declared against the communist regime", SITE said.

Argentina's Lionel Messi, cleared to play in the Olympics after striking a late deal with his club Barcelona, celebrated by scoring the opener and creating the winner as the South Americans beat Ivory Coast 2-1 on Thursday. Messi's participation in the Games had been in serious doubt after Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled on Wednesday that Barcelona was not obliged to release him for the tournament. But after a deal was struck over insurance cover for potential injury and a commitment that the forward would not play in international friendlies for one year, Messi took the field in Shanghai. After a lively start from Ivory Coast, who played with plenty of pace and ambition, Argentina went close through forward Sergio Aguero who had a shot saved in the seventh minute and then blasted wide from a promising position 20 minutes later. Ivory Coast forward Salaman Kalou had an effort disallowed for offside but Argentina were growing in confidence and fluency and after Riquelme had gone close with a free-kick, Messi found the breakthrough. Riquelme threaded a superb pass into the path of Messi who showed great composure as he effortlessly slotted home. The Africans fought back though after the break when Sekou Cisse rose superbly at the back post and his firm header flashed past Oscar Ustari to make it 1-1. Messi, lively throughout, set up Aguero for a shot on goal that was ruled out for offside in the 65th and then with four minutes of normal time remaining he produced the inspiration for the winner.

Haze hovered over the Chinese capital on Thursday, just a day before the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games that have been beset by worries about pollution. Cloudy skies were forecast for the rest of the day in Beijing where the Environmental Protection Bureau said that levels of particulate matter were within the "fairly good" range on Wednesday. Humid, still weather and temperatures hitting 34 degrees Celsius (93 Fahrenheit) have seen stubborn smog hanging over the city over the past few days. The capital has already pulled millions of cars off the roads and halted factory production to ensure cleaner air. Friday is expected to be cloudy too, with scattered rain, and a maximum temperature of 30 degrees Celsius (86 Fahrenheit). It was raining in muggy Hong Kong, where equestrian events are scheduled to start on Saturday, as a tropical storm looms over the former British territory. Tropical storms often develop over the South China Sea in the summer months, growing into full-fledged typhoons threatening China, the Philippines, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan. For athletes of endurance events, smog could pose a major problem and the International Olympic Committee has said it might reschedule events if the pollution is too bad.

The Olympic flame climbed the Great Wall on Thursday, an ascent shrouded in morning mist and laden in symbolism as it neared the end of a tortuous route around the world. The build-up to the Games, starting on Friday, has been troubled by international tensions over China's policies on human rights, worries about smog, and protests over restive Tibet which dogged the international leg of the torch relay. The torch drew patriotic throngs to the Chinese capital on Wednesday and the Great Wall was lined with volunteers in yellow uniforms waving red fans as far as the eye could see on Thursday. The crowd was showered with confetti as the torch was lit against the backdrop of the winding wall and craggy mountains just outside Beijing. The torch was paraded along the ramparts of the Great Wall, which are wide enough for five horses. The model of a giant dragon was crouched on one of the watchtowers and, with the mountains behind, it looked like the backdrop for an ancient Chinese painting. Patriotic music blared out from loud speakers, echoing around the wall and drums and cymbals thundered out a pounding beat. A flock of doves was released and the birds swept out across the countryside and into the mist.

Living in Beijing? The government wants to know your shoe size, blood group, political affiliation and where you get your money from, according to police in at least one corner of the security-obsessed Olympic host city. Questionnaires handed to a businessman in Beijing's east also demanded full technical details of the company computer network and a hand-drawn map of Internet connections. Beijing has ramped up security ahead of the Games, with missile launchers guarding the main venues and a special 100,000-strong security force on the alert for terrorists. Residents of the capital have got used to over-zealous police intruding into their lives. Visitors, even those who stay only one night, are expected to register at the local police station. Police sometimes call to ask why if they do not. Compounds in the city centre have demanded even long-term residents carry special identity cards, while one restaurant owner said his staff had been warned by police not to speak to foreign customers about anything but their orders.

Visitors to Beijing hoping to buy cheap pirate copies of hit movies or fake designer clothing have been relieved to discover that government efforts to crack down on counterfeit goods have come up short. With the Olympics just a day away, athletes, officials and fans were using the time to snap up bargains of dubious quality, crowding into the Silk Street Market, a six-floor mall in the east of Beijing that is the city's largest bazaar for fakes. They didn't have to venture that far. Watch vendors, selling Rolex timepieces of questionable time-keeping ability, were just outside the gates of the Forbidden City, the old imperial heart of the capital. And DVD sellers strolled through the streets outside nearby hotels, offering an up-to-date selection, including Batman sequel "The Dark Knight", which is still in the theatres. China had announced a "hundred day operation against pirate copies", keen to present a squeaky clean image to the world during the Olympics. The campaign to clear fakes off the streets of Beijing has made life more difficult for vendors, but many have judged that the prospect of profiting from visiting crowds outweighs the risk of trouble with the law. "I've got to make a living. I'm careful. A few sellers have been caught and held in the police station for two or three or days," said Zhang, a DVD salesman.

Attempting to alter the menu served to his multi-millionaire players is turning into a wild goose chase, Brazil coach Dunga has said. "When you ask the chef to change the menu, he has to talk to his boss, who has to talk to his boss, who has to talk to his boss and by that time the Olympics are over," said Dunga, whose team face Belgium in Shenyang on Thursday. The former World Cup captain also complained that his team were not being allowed enough time to train. "There are a lot of difficulties.....we were only allowed to train for one hour and 15 minutes, something which was decided by someone who has never played football," he told Brazilian media. Brazil, who usually stay in top hotels, fly to venues and bring their own food, have this time settled for the official accommodation and travel, even though their squad includes players such as Ronaldinho, Anderson and Diego. Brazil, who will travel by train to their final group match against China in Qinghuangdao, are attempting to win the Olympic soccer tournament for the first time and regard it as the one major title which has eluded them.

Some athletes fret about the Beijing smog. Others say, relax and have a cigarette. While many Olympians meditate or listen to music to calm their pre-competition nerves, several weightlifters training in Beijing on Tuesday tried to lighten up by lighting up. "I'd say 70 out of a 100 athletes in the Olympic village smoke," said Italian weightlifter Giorgio de Luca, perhaps exaggerating a little. The lifter, looking happy and relaxed in shorts and green flip-flops, was winding down after a gym session with a coffee and a cigarette. He cheerfully ignored the mildly disapproving glances from his coach. Smoking is banned in most parts of the Olympic Village, but there are designated smoking areas and some athletes even sneak out on to the balcony for a quick puff, de Luca said. Two North Korean coaches and an athlete wandered over to the ashtray outside the gym and lit up, sharing a few laughs after a tough work-out. Asked if smoking hurt his athletic performance, de Luca shrugged and grinned: "I always say, 'I'm not an athlete, I'm a normal guy with a passion for weightlifting.'"

US swimmer Amanda Beard unveiled a demure nude photograph of herself urging women "Don't wear fur" on Wednesday, hours after Chinese authorities had prevented her from her staging a news conference for "safety" reasons. The Athens 2004 Olympic gold medallist said she was determined to carry on even after plainclothes police banned her scheduled news conference at a Beijing hotel "for our safety". Beard, 26, declined to say if she believed that was the real motive for the ban. She went ahead with her campaign, only at a different location. Instead of the hotel, she appeared in front of reporters and TV cameras outside the heavily fenced Olympic athletes' village. "What happens with animals when their skin is ripped from their bodies when they are still alive, it's heartbreaking for me," she said. The Olympics provided a great platform for making those views known, she added. Chinese Olympic security guards watched the media scrum from the South Gate of the village but did not intervene. The German Olympic cycling team, heading out for training in hot, muggy weather, stopped for a look. PETA spokesman Jason Baker said eight Chinese security officials in plain clothes showed up at the group's hotel late on Tuesday to announce the planned press conference would not be permitted. They cited safety concerns, he said.

Euphoric crowds chanting "Go Olympics, Go Beijing" cheered the Olympic flame through Tiananmen Square on Wednesday at the end of its troubled global relay. Two days before the Games start, one of China's best-known sportsmen, 7ft 6 in basketball player Yao Ming, held the flame above a sea of beaming faces in the Beijing landmark best-known to the world for the crushing of 1989 student protests. Children wore "I Love China" T-shirts and workers waved flags and pom-poms, while drums and cymbals reverberated around the square under a portrait of late revolutionary leader Mao Zedong. China hopes such images of the torch's final passage through Beijing will banish memories of pro-free Tibet protests dogging the flame's journey through Paris, London and elsewhere. But the party mood was marred for the Communist government when, according to state media, four foreigners were arrested for unravelling a "Free Tibet" banner from electricity poles near an Olympic venue. The Games -- which have given China an unprecedented chance to showcase its modern face but also galvanised critics of its human rights record -- start on Friday. China's half-century rule in the Himalayan region of Tibet is the most contentious issues. Demonstrations around the torch's international legs offended many Chinese, who see the Games as a moment of national pride for a nation some view as the emerging 21st century superpower. "It's not just about the sport, it's about the image of China," said Xi Li, 29, one of thousands of officially organised well-wishers watching the torch near the entrance of the Forbidden City on the edge of Tiananmen Square. "Chairman Mao would have been happy if he were here today!"

Flag-waving crowds readied to cheer the Olympic torch through China's national capital on Wednesday as it began the final steps of a relay marked by patriotic pomp, controversy and strict security. The flame for the Beijing Games started its final journey from the ancient Forbidden City, once home of China's emperors, where crowds shouted "Go Olympics, Go China!." It will reach the main Bird's Nest Stadium on Friday for the opening ceremony. People lining the torch route near Tiananmen Square, symbolic heart of the capital, brandished white Games banners and red national flags, reflecting the ardent patriotism that has accompanied the torch since it began its 130-day journey. Tens of thousands of troops, police and plain clothes security guards on Beijing streets underscored official worry about security after militants killed 16 border police in China's far northwest Xinjiang province on Monday. In a tradition introduced before the 1936 Berlin Olympics, the flame is lit from the sun's rays in ancient Olympia, Greece, then carried across the globe by thousands of runners.