BEIJING - In a breathtaking Opening Ceremony celebrating its rich history and swelling with optimism about its future, China launched the 2008 Olympic Games on Friday night by reaching out to the world.

“Friends have come from afar, how happy we are” 2,008 drummers quoted the Chinese educator Confucius, in opening a night at the Bird’s Nest, in which the Beijing Games welcomed 204 countries and 90 international dignitaries including President George W. Bush.

“The charm of the Olympic Games dwells in its extraordinary inclusiveness,” Beijing organizing committee president Liu Qi told a crowd that overflowed the stadium’s 91,000-seat capacity. “Today, people of different nations and religious backgrounds coming from 204 countries and regions have gathered under the Olympic flag to celebrate this grand gala of humankind. At this beautiful occasion where the melody of ‘One World One Dream’ rises to a crescendo, our friendship is strengthened and our mutual understanding is deepened.”

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With a $300 million price tag and lasting more than four hours on a sweltering night, the Opening Ceremony included 14,000 performers, 9,000 of them from the People’s Liberation Army with another 600 workers needed to run the performance’s 30,000 fireworks. But the evening was dominated by a series of electronic scrolls that covered much of the stadium floor and on which more than 3,000 years of China’s history and art were traced.

Security was heavy even by Olympic standards, Chinese officials cutting off all but accredited traffic for a two-mile radius around Olympic Green. Threats of protests over China’s human rights record and support of the Sudanese government never materialized inside the stadium. The only time the evening went off script was when Bush was greeted with an equal mixture of cheers and jeers when he and First Lady Laura Bush were shown waving from to the U.S. team on the stadium video screen.

Taiwan was warmly received as was the team from Palestine, its members waving peace signs as they circled the stadium. Iraq was welcomed with a roar but the loudest eruption came when Houston Rockets center Yao Ming led out the Chinese team. Moments later former gymnast Li Ning, clutching the Olympic flame, was lifted by cables 20 stories above the stadium floor. While there had been widespread speculation in recent days that Olympic champion hurdler Liu Xang would light the torch, Li holds a special place in China’s sports and cultural history. Li won five medals, three gold, at the 1984 Games in Los Angeles, China’s Olympic debut.

Friday he literally ran on air, circling the top of the stadium, a special circular video screen following his path, revealing stops on the Olympic torch relay as it did. Finally Li reached the foot of the cone-shaped Olympic cauldron a crimson wave draped around it and lit torch, touching off an explosion of fireworks across Beijing.

“It shows the dream of Chinese sportsmen for generations and also the common aspirations of 1.3 billion Chinese people,” Li said later. “The success of lighting the Flame means the realization of China’s 100-year-old dream. The Flame also lights up the hope of ‘One World, One Dream.’ ”

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