held in the Homenetmen Beirut club facilities, while Sporting Al Riyadi Beirut's arena hosted the female basketball competition. The Michel el-Murr Stadium in Bauchrieh held the judo competitions and, further north, the Byblos beaches hosted the beach volleyball matches. Cultural events were held in the UNESCO Palace and the Abou Khater and Béryte theaters at the Université Saint-Joseph in Beirut. The UNESCO Palace hosted the dance, painting, photography and sculpture competitions. The Abou Khater and Béryte theaters hosted the preliminary phases of literature and song competitions. The final phase of these competitions took place in the Beirut International Exhibition & Leisure Center (BIEL) and at the Casino du Liban. Security The Jeux de la Francophonie were held amidst the crisis of formation of the Lebanese government and ever-present fears of internal turmoil. The Interior Minister, Ziad Baroud, affirmed that the Games would put Lebanon back on the world map and stressed that the country was capable of meeting all its commitments despite its domestic crisis. Security for the event was tight with thousands of soldiers and police deployed around the various venues and at the Lebanese University main campus that hosted the "Francophone Village" at the outskirts of Beirut where participants stayed. Prime minister-designate Saad Hariri urged all the political parties to exercise restraint, describing the Games as important for the country's image. Media coverage The opening ceremony of the Games was transmitted live and was watched by a television audience of around 70 million spectators across the world. Participation Around 3000 participants from 46 countries competed in the Games. Of these countries, 43 are full members of the International Organization of the Francophonie, two are associate members (Armenia and Cyprus), and Mozambique was the sole observer nation in attendance. Furthermore, two participating governments (New Brunswick and Quebec) also competed. Calendar |+Games calendar |- style="font-size:90%" |bgcolor=#8ac23d| ||Opening Ceremony|| bgcolor=#02ade5| ||Event competitions|| bgcolor=#936baa| ||Event finals||bgcolor=#ee3333| ||Closing ceremony |- |- !September/October !width=40px|26th !width=40px|27th !width=40px|28th !width=40px|29th !width=40px|30th !width=40px|1st !width=40px|2nd !width=40px|3rd !width=40px|4th !width=40px|5th !width=40px|6th !width=45px|Total |-style="font-size:90%" | Ceremonies || ||bgcolor="#8ac23d" align="center" |● || || || || || || || || ||bgcolor=#ee3333 align="center" |● || |-style="font-size:90%" !colspan=13|Sport events |-style="font-size:90%" | Athletics | | | | | | bgcolor="#936baa" align="center"| ● ● ● | bgcolor="#936baa" align="center"| ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● | bgcolor="#936baa" align="center"| ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● | bgcolor="#936baa" align="center"| ● ●