The Cahill Expressway will be an alcohol-free zone, closed to traffic, to encourage families to use it as a vantage point to watch the ceremony and fireworks. The city extravaganza will include fireworks on the Harbour Bridge, a 14-kilometre ''river of lightning'' fireworks display on the Parramatta River, and a free concert in the Domain headed by Savage Garden, which is expected to attract 60,000 people. The security focus will switch to the Harbour and the city once the flame is extinguished at the Olympic Stadium around 10pm. The Cahill Expressway will be closed earlier in the day for the men's marathon and will reopen to pedestrians at 7pm. More than 100,000 people will crowd into the live sites around the city.
Police expect the sites to fill rapidly.
No alcohol can be brought into the live sites, but will be sold in restricted areas at all but the Belmore Park live site, near Central Station. Inside the Olympic Stadium the crowd of 112,000 will be entertained by performers including Kylie Minogue, Jimmy Barnes, INXS, Midnight Oil and Yothu Yindi. Vanessa Amorosi, who sang Heroes Live Forever at the opening ceremony, will sing her hit single Absolutely Everybody . More than 13,000 athletes and 7500 dancers and circus acts will join in the festivities. Paul Hogan and Elle Macpherson will also appear.