BAKU, Azerbaijan — The first European Games opened Friday in Azerbaijan's capital Baku with an extravagant opening ceremony featuring Lady Gaga. During a ceremony at the 68,000-seat Olympic Stadium that celebrated the host nation's history and the importance of science, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev declared the games open. Among those looking on were International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach and many of the games' 6,000 athletes. The multi-sport competition is an attempt to create a European equivalent to long-running events such as the Pan-American Games and Asian Games, but the build-up has been overshadowed by criticism of the ex-Soviet nation's jailing of political opponents. There are also concerns over the competition's sporting status, given that it will not host top-level athletics or swimming events. — AP
