Once the athletes had filed into the stadium, the sparkling digital show resumed as a snowflake spread light and warmth across the earth.

President of the Beijing local organizing committee Cai Qi and IOC president Bach gave traditional speeches before Chinese leader Xi formally declared the Games open, sparking move pyrotechnics in the Beijing sky.

In an anticipated moment of the ceremony, the Olympic torch was carried into the stadium by a series of Chinese sporting icons before the torch was placed in the center of a giant luminous snowflake which bears the names of Olympic nations on smaller snowflakes.

The creation was then raised high into the sky, with the flicker of the torch remaining rather than a traditionally larger cauldron.

Almost 3,000 athletes from more than 90 nations will compete for medals across 109 disciplines in the coming days, until the closing ceremony on February 20.

Competitions are being hosted at three locations: Beijing, Yanqing and Zhangjiakou. Beijing will host the indoor ice competitions and some of the facilities from the 2008 Summer Games will again be used.