GUIYANG - The ongoing Ninth National Traditional Games for Ethnic Minorities of China will take a day off on Thursday and all participants will be welcome to join the citizens in a very big party at the host city Guiyang's Guanshan Lake Park.

As a tradition for the ethnic games, the big party on day off acts as a gala to bring all the athletes, officials, reporters, organizers and the local citizens together to promote multi-communication and enhance mutual understanding while enjoying folk shows and specific designed activities.

Special coverage: The 9th National Traditional Games of Ethnic Minorities

Ding Xudong, department head of the party's sketchers, said that figure nine will be a key word here to indicate the ninth version of the ethnic games.

Entering the party site, there will be nine pillars standing aside of the nine gates respectively named after nine remarkable districts of the southwestern Guizhou province, and 999 pictures of smiling faces taken from the field day will be posted on nine theme walls outside the main stage.

Before the party kicks off, 99 guns will be fired, 999 pigeons will be released, 99 tymbals will be knolled and 99 trombones will be played to mark the moment when the curtain rises.

Just around the main stage of the folk show, 9999 tables will be served dinner with all participants for the ethnic games supposed to be present.

"We are expecting over 20,000 entries," said Ding. "1,500 volunteers will be in service there to make sure of a safe and jolly party."

A special program at the beginning of the party will be staged as senior officials from the host authorities will plant a "Heart to Heart" tree together with representitives from all the 34 delegations, while 34 smaller trees will also be planted with 1 kilogram's soil and 500 milliliters' water taken from the each delegation's hometown.

After all the designed activities, the show will come up with programs from artists of each participating delegation.

Then a special group of beauties dubbed as "ethnic flowers" will join the show to display Chinese ethnic culture. A total of 56 lovely girls, representing all the 56 ethnic groups of the world's most populous country, will be featured in the programs, wearing costumes and outfits of their own ethnic groups.

They will sing and dance in the culture events, with some of the performances to be staged by the "ethnic flowers" are often performed during traditional fairs, celebrations and holidays among China's ethnic groups.

In the 58 years of the ethnic games' history, the big party on day off has been a remarkable activity during the grand ethnic gala, which has not a single Olympic sport on the program but fit up the most with the Olympic spirit, which emphasizes the cultural differences and understanding.

The Ethnic Games gathers the 55 Chinese ethnic minorities, which account for about 8.49 percent of the country's population of 1.37 billion besides the largest nationality the Hans, and has long been reckoned an important presence in maintaining the 55 ethnic groups' own rich traditions and customs.