Cho Hae-nyoung, president of the Daegu Universiade Organizing Committee (DUOC), said the host city is fully prepared for the collegiate sports festival.

"We've already finished all preparations," said Cho on the eve of the opening ceremony.

All procedural matters are going smoothly with ticket sales forthe opening ceremony Thursday night reaching 78 percent before theevent.

Organizers are pleased with the number considering the opening ceremony for last year's Busan Asian Games sold 89 percent of its tickets.

Under the theme of "Dream for Unity", a total of 7,180 participants from 172 countries and regions, both Games records, will attend the 22nd Summer Universiade which run through to August 31.

"The dream for unity will come true in Daegu where student athletes from around the world will show the ideas of youth, beyond the boundaries of race, religion and political belief," said Cho, who is also the mayor of Daegu.

In addition to the "unity" concept, Cho also believes every participant will soak up South Korea's cultural heritage -- the second major objective of a culture-oriented Universiade.

"There was a tendency for previous Universiade hosts to focus largely on sporting events," he said. "But this time we are tryingto make it a unique event that is full of cultural flavor."

The DUOC and the Daegu Metropolitan City government are preparing more than 40 cultural events to showcase South Korea's cultural legacy.

"I hope Daegu will emerge upon the international scene through the Universiade and evolve into a world-class city," said Cho.