A brief guide to the attractions and high-profile guests scheduled for the opening ceremony of the Special Olympics.
Guests of honour: The President, Mrs McAleese; former South African president Nelson Mandela; and Ms Eunice Kennedy Shriver, Special Olympics founder and sister of the late US president John F. Kennedy.
Star performers: Include Bono, U2, The Corrs, Samantha Mumba, and actor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Patrick Kielty presents.
A Dash of Colour: Dance theatre using flags, designed and made by each one of the games' 177 host towns.
All the Colours of the Rainbow: Audience participating with coloured flags, made by the prisoners and staff of Mountjoy Prison.
Solstice: Performance by Open Arts, a Belfast-based arts organisation for people with disabilities, linking in with the event's occasion on Mid-Summer's Day.
The Ball: Macnas and Blue Teapot theatre groups celebrate the games' ball sports, climaxing with the appearance of Ballboy, a giant inflatable character.
Riverdance: More than 100 dancers perform the longest troupe line ever seen in an Irish dance show, introduced by new female soloist Lynn Hilary (20), from Blackrock, Dublin, who won a nationwide competition for the part.
Flame of Hope: A cauldron designed and constructed by the National College of Art and Design will receive the Olympic Flame from North Carolina, where the last games were held.
Olympic Flag: To arrive in the stadium carried by athletes and accompanied by a drum score by percussionist Noel Eccles, before a raising ceremony.
Athlete's Song: Composed by Shaun Davey, May We Never Have to Say Goodbye will be performed by Rita Connolly, Ronan Tynan, the National Symphony Orchestra, traditional musicians, a pipe band and a choir of 500. The song is due to be released as a single in June.
