By Cindy Sui
BBC News, Taipei
**A sporting event that bills itself as an alternative to the Olympic Games is opening in Taiwan.**Known as the World Games, this event is for the 31 sports that did not make it into the Olympics - such as water skiing, canoe polo and tug-of-war.
More than 3,000 athletes from 91 countries are taking part.
For Taiwan, the Games are not just about sports - they are a rare opportunity for the island to emerge from the shadow of China.
Taiwan has pulled out all the stops to host the Games in its second largest city Kaohsiung.
It has spent about $225 million, partly to build a state-of-the-art solar-powered stadium.
It has also launched a major campaign to eradicate mosquitoes.
And it is wooing tourists from China.
Separated from China since the end of a civil war in 1949, Taiwan rarely gets to host major international events, largely due to tensions with China.
Handling China
Relations with China have improved significantly over the past year and organisers are doing everything they can to make sure they stay that way during the Games.
One of the organisers, Chu Ting-shan, said they had even trained local spectators to cheer politely for Taiwan’s teams, especially when they are competing against China.
“The organizing committee, we are very cautious about the consequences if something happens. We are very careful about it, so there will be more security installed for Chinese athletes,” Ms Chu said.
“And if some people do have a particular feeling about Chinese athletes, we do have our police manpower, we do have our security things set up, but how should I say, I think it’s also their right to express their patriotism, it’s also their right to express their feeling towards something,” she added.
Taiwan has spent far more on the Games than previous hosts and the tickets are cheaper.
But despite this, only about half of the 350,000 tickets have been sold.
Organisers are blaming the economic downturn and are planning to bring in school students to fill the seats.
In a last ditch effort to sell more tickets, the city will put the tickets into a prize draw and the winners will get an apartment or a car.