Led by drummers, soldiers in old fashioned uniforms and 17 flag bearers; participants,
volunteers and sponsors marched up the steep incline to Carlsten Fortress, where
Commandant Eive Swanberg received them all. The evening began with speeches by
Principal Race Officer Kerstin Holmberg and RGYC (GKSS) chairman Lennart
Svantesson. The ISAF president Göran Petersson then declared the BMW Dragon Gold
Cup officially opened.