MM Lee Kuan Yew at the close of The Singapore Leg of The Journey of The Youth Olympic Flame and Opening of The Singapore 2010 City Celebration Site

My fellow Singaporeans,
Distinguished Guests and friends from overseas,

This marks the final day of the Journey of the Youth Olympic Flame. The voyage has spanned thousands of kilometres across the five continents and around our city-state. The journey began in ancient Olympia, Greece, where the Olympic Flame was lit, before travelling to the cities of Berlin, Dakar, Mexico City, Auckland, Seoul and finally to all the community districts in Singapore.

Tomorrow, the Youth Olympic Games will officially begin. Millions of people worldwide will watch the Opening Ceremony before we commence the 12 days of sport competitions, integrated with a variety of cultural and educational activities. We must show the world that we are a gracious people, warm to our fellow Singaporeans and friendly to our visitors.

Few have imagined that we would one day host such an international event. Despite our constraints and limited expertise in this area, we offer our compact city and our resourceful people. 

We constantly reinvent ourselves to make Singapore an exciting and inviting corner of the world. We provide exciting opportunities and a high quality of life. We invest in our people, with strong emphasis on education and the importance of basic values. We celebrate our multi-cultural diversity that makes up Singapore and provide a safe environment for all who have this place as home. We are committed to sustainable development and do our share as a global citizen.

We support the ideals of Olympism and in the way it aims to encourage young people to take up sports and embrace and live by the values of Excellence, Friendship and Respect through the Youth Olympic Games.

This evening’s celebration is at the Marina Bay Promontory, the iconic centre of our city. It marks the start of the Singapore 2010 City Celebration – a two-week long event. From today till 26 August, Singaporeans and international visitors will be treated with performances and activities to allow you to soak in the Youth Olympic Games festivity.

I wish all of you an enjoyable and memorable experience in Singapore.