Such speeches at these events are a typical formality, but this one felt particularly poignant.

You see, Prince Abdulaziz’s words carry significant weight. He is the chair of the Saudi Games Organising Committee, President of the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee and the Sports Minister.

It is fair to say, what he says is rather important and, with Saudi Arabia being an emerging sporting powerhouse, the world should have paid very close attention to the comments he made on stage.

"With the Saudi Games, our mission is to advance out nation's sports sector, empowering it with the very best of talent and resources," he said.

"But it is not just reserved to professional clubs and athletes... Collectively we want to achieve a healthy society full of individuals who are active and are passionate about various sporting pursuits.

"We worked with speed and precision to bring to the Kingdom and this legacy - for the present and the future - that reflects our great nation's ambitious and unlimited capabilities.

"Today, we are living and witnessing a stellar moment - one that's full of pride for every Saudi citizen and resident.

"With meticulous planning and unwavering determination, we successfully bring you a historic inaugural edition of the Saudi Games - one that will shape the future of Saudi sport and its achievements in the years to come and plays a major part of the Vision 2030."

I reported on these remarks in an article of the Opening Ceremony, which you can access here, and I wanted to revisit them because it wasn’t just a message to the Saudi population, or even the wider Middle East region and the visiting delegates, but one to the world.

Prince Abdulaziz was subtly, and indirectly, declaring once again that they are serious about their sporting ambitions, and they are here to fight for such stature whether their opponents like it or not.

Such aspirations go beyond simply getting some competition success on the international stage. No, they want the whole package. That means hosting your favourite events, whether that is major boxing bouts, Formula One races, the Asian Games, the FIFA World Cup or the Olympics. They want it all.

The Saudi Games, which was one of the largest sporting competitions to be held in the Arab world, allowed the country - and the host city Riyadh - to effectively go through a test run.

Forty-five sports. More than 6,000 athletes. Twelve days of medal competition. Saudi Arabia wanted sporting attention and they got it.

Representatives of International Federations popped by, and officials of the Gulf Cooperation Council National Olympic Committees came for a side-line meeting and attended the Opening Ceremony.

For the athletes themselves, they lavished at the chance to compete on a national stage. Professional golfer and Saudi Games bronze medallist Othman Al-Mulla told insidethegames it was a sporting "celebration" and "showcase".

While it was just a national event, the Saudi Games was very much an international spectacle tunnelling the belief that the country has in its Vision 2030 roadmap. 

Its purpose is to implement social and economic reform, particularly concerning its drive to diversify its economy away from oil, improve the quality of life of its citizens and raise the level of sport.

From those I spoke to, I gathered there is a genuine belief in this long-term strategic framework. The most telling moment came when those around me discussed their optimism of women’s sport after Rahma Alkhawahr won the first Saudi Games gold medal.

Yet, damning issues remain.

As it continues to open to international media, it will need to find a better method of handling journalist requests for interviews. Any attempt to organise or conduct an interview with a Saudi sporting official never came to fruition either due to the process imposed or an unwillingness to take part.

In one instance, an official changed their mind just before the interview started as they suggested they did not realise it was an interview. 

They were told three times previously that it was an interview. Instead, they suggested they needed to prepare more and insisted it should be rescheduled. Despite attempts to nail down a new time and date, the interview never took place.

While frustrating, this lack of access is perhaps down to officials being concerned about what they might say or even fearful of questions they might be asked.

Criticism of Saudi Arabia's human rights record and allegations of sportswashing are not disappearing any time soon. In fact, it is likely to intensify as Saudi Arabia's stake in sport grows.

Opponents will continue to point to the country severely restricting women's rights and free speech, making homosexuality a criminal offence and its leading role in a coalition that has carried out deadly airstrikes across Yemen since 2015.

However, this only scratches the surface as new examples of human rights breaches grab headlines regularly.

Earlier this week, Mary Lawlor, the United Nations (UN) special rapporteur on human rights defenders, called for her imprisoned Saudi human rights advocate Mohammad Al-Qahtani to be allowed contact. His family has allegedly lost communication with him since October 23 after he made a complaint about inmates attacking him.

Al-Qahtani was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2013 for allegedly providing false information to outside sources, including UN human rights mechanisms and he has been serving his sentence in Al-Ha'r Reformatory Prison in Riyadh since May 2022.

Lawlor expressed she is concerned for his health and life as well as the use of incommunicado detention as it represents a breach of international law.

"Such methods give rise to grave concerns for the personal integrity of detainees, as they run a heightened risk of being subjected to ill-treatment and torture when all contact with the outside world has been blocked," she said.

Then there is the case of Carly Morris, an American woman who has been detained in Saudi Arabia after claiming on Twitter she and her young daughter were lured to the country and trapped there since 2019.

Beyond simply hosting a sporting event, Saudi Arabia must become aware that questions over these issues will persist and - if replicated - the process or attitudes to working with the media would be difficult to enforce at a major sporting event where its presence would be far more substantial.

Though that is all for the future. For now, Saudi Arabia will celebrate its hosting of the inaugural Saudi Games. More editions are likely to come, although there is no indication of how often it will be. 

It is hoped that Saudi sport will have changed with every passing iteration. Whether the same unavoidable problems will have too, I am not so sure.