Ten Teams to Compete in 26th Macau International Fireworks Display Contest

Ten teams will compete in the 26th Macau International Fireworks Display Contest which will be held above the sea area before the Macau Tower on 8, 13, 20, 27 September and 1 October 2014.

The ten teams this year come from (according to the order in the contest program) Taiwan; Croatia; China; France; Korea; Poland; Portugal; Australia; Italy and Spain. Croatia and Poland are two new countries in the contest; similarly, the companies from Spain and Australia will stage their first performance in Macau.

MGTO Director Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, said, "The city welcomes the 26th edition of Macau International Fireworks Display Contest this year. We are glad that the event has won ardent support from many well-known fireworks companies from across the globe in the past 25 years, making it one of the most stunning events of the year which fascinates more than ten thousands of citizens and visitors flocking into town for the fireworks show every year."

Over the past 13 years, Mirnovec Pirotehnika from Croatia has organized a number of international fireworks festivals which involved internationally-acclaimed fireworks companies. The Croatian company has also actively joined various international fireworks contests and won awards, including the second place in International Fireworks Festival in Malta in 2012 and in Belgium and Canada respectively in 2013.

Surex, on the other hand, is a Poland company which holds great passion for pyrotechnics and excels at producing a diversity of tailor-made products. The company also received a range of accolades in numerous important international events, including the third prize in International Fireworks Competition in Shanghai in 2012.

The pyrotechnic businesses from Spain and Australia will make their debut in Macau. The Spanish company Pirotecnia Zaragozana once joined various international contests and often came out among the top three. In 2012, the company won the first prize in Pyrotechnic Art Festival of Cannes in France. Coming from Australia, Skylighter Fireworks has been in charge of the fireworks show on New Year's Eve in Brisbane since 2009 and the Australia Day celebrations in the city from 2010 to 2014, creating wonderful displays which attracted 40,000 spectators every year.

The other six teams have competed in the Macau contest before and some of them ranked among the top three. The Italian company La Tirrena has a long history since founded in 1898 over a century ago. The company has won awards along the years, enjoying wide recognition across Italy and the international community. Five years ago, La Tirrena won the second prize in the Macau contest. Coming from Portugal, Pyrofel - Pirotecnia Lda. joined the Macau contest twice and was once the champion in town. The company specializes in creative fireworks design and incorporating into fireworks displays a range of multimedia elements such as light, laser, water and music. Based in Hunan, China, Sunny Fireworks won the third place in Macau before and the second place in International Fireworks Competition in Shanghai in 2012; whereas the pyrotechnic businesses namely Sodip Pyrotechnie and Daehan Fireworks Co. from France and Korea respectively both joined the fireworks display contest in Macau twice in the past. Sy Yuan Fireworks Co., Ltd. from Taiwan, China also took part in the Macau contest two years ago. Overall the teams demonstrate competitive experience and are ready to bring on a myriad of spectacular displays for both citizens and visitors.

Teams have to choreograph their fireworks displays to both music and laser light projections to enhance the audience's experience with a more fascinating light and sound spectacular. Spectators can view live broadcast of the fireworks shows with background music on TDM - Radio Macau's Chinese Channel (FM 100.7) and TDM – Macau TV Channel every fireworks evening.

MGTO and Companhia de Telecomunicações de Macau S.A.R.L. (CTM) have co-launched "Macau International Fireworks Display Contest SMS Game" since 2010. The game has won enthusiastic feedback with over 2,000 text messages received last year. MGTO will again present the SMS Game with CTM this year to encourage citizens' participation in the event.