The “Mascots in Motion” with lively and active cartoon images which embody the passionate sport spirit of the Games, officials said today when they were launched.

With various facial expressions ranging from gentle to furious, the 16th Asian Games’ “Mascots in Motion” are illustrated in competition at each of the 28 Summer Olympic disciplines as well as the numerous non-Olympic sports that will be held during Games, including baseball, softball, bowling, dragon boat and cricket.

The “Mascots in Motion” also feature golf and rugby sevens, which are part of the Asian Games, and have been recommended for inclusion in the 2016 Olympics.

As the Asian Games are part of the worldwide Olympic Movement, each of the animated mascots are depicted wearing the colours of the five Olympic rings – black, red, green, blue and yellow.

The five Olympic rings represent the five continents and were designed in 1913, adopted in 1914 and debuted at the Games at the 1920 Summer Olympic Games in Antwerp.

The design team was headed by Russell Zhu. the chief executive of the Daley Group, Professor Chen Xiaoqing, the Dean of the College of Design at the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts, Li Xiongfei, the design director, along with designers Zhou Lijun, Calvin Fu and Liu Wenjun.

More than 14,000 athletes, trainers and coaches from 45 countries and regions will compete in 42 sports at the Asian Games, which are due to open on November 12, 2010, and finish on November 27.