AFTER five days of intense competition, The United Kingdom won the second annual World Pyro Olympics held for five days along the Manila Bay area. Last year, Australia won the title.

The event kept traffic at a standstill around the Esplanade of the Mall of Asia located by the bay from which fireworks were launched from barges. Thousands jostled with the holiday mall crowd to marvel, open-mouthed, at the display.

Nine countries unveiled their best sparklers including previous winner Australia, China, Germany, the U.S., the U.K., Poland, Spain, Denmark and Canada. As host country, the Philippines put up its own show on the last day.

A totally Pinoy idea, the World Pyro Olympics was produced by the La Mancha Group of Companies, headed by its President Ricardo P. Crisostomo. The group was responsible for staging the 30-minute pyro-musical show during the 1998 Philippine Centennial celebration, together with its foreign associates from China, Germany and the United States.