By LIANG TAO, CRI Correspondent

A 4 million HK dollar fireworks extravaganza featuring "Olympic hoops", "swinging horse tails" and "cracking candles", will light up Victoria Harbour on October 1 to celebrate National Day and the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Starting at 9.15pm, the display will last for 23 minutes and see nearly 24,000 firework shells fired 300 metres into the air from three barges.

The show will start with "Salute to our Motherland", with accompanying music.

Other themes include "Pearl of the Orient", "Top of the World" and "Love in Hong Kong", with a soundtrack ranging from classical anthems to Canto-pop.

"Half-red Half-green Peony" will symbolize the "one country, two systems" concept, while "Angel Hair", "Silver Tail to Water" and "Spider Web" will represent dressage, show jumping and cross-country in the Olympic equestrian events, to be staged in Hong Kong.

The topic for the display was inspired by Kenneth Chu Ting-kin, vice-chairman of Mission Hills Golf Club near Shenzhen, which is sponsoring the event.

Fireworks technical consultant Wilson Mao Wai-shing urged spectators not to crowd the Tsim Sha Tsui and Wan Chai waterfronts, saying the display would be visible from many viewpoints and that the soundtrack would be played on Commercial Radio.