Hosts of the pre-opening ceremony show Neshan Derartinian and Michael Azzi came to the stage under umbrellas when the clock ticked to six o'clock in the evening but the rain did not affect the almost capacity spectators in Khalifa stadium.

    It has been showering for most of the day and rained several more times in the past few days.

    Opening ceremony artistic director David Atkins once said he did not worry about raining during the opening.

    "It rained twice in the two years that I've been in Qatar, (but) four times in the past week," he said in a media conference about the ceremony Wednesday.

    "But of course, we are prepared for all sorts of contingencies ... as part of our risk management plan. Most of the segments of the opening ceremony are deliverable even in the rain, although a few elements may have to be dropped."

    Doha only has 8.8 rainy days yearly on average.