You can watch the historic opening ceremony live at 12:30 p.m. CDT, July 26 on KXAN with a preview show at 11 a.m. A Spanish-language broadcast will start at noon on Telemundo. The NBC Olympics team will provide additional coverage of the ceremony in primetime at 6:30 p.m.
AUSTIN (KXAN) — For the first time in Summer Olympic history, the opening ceremony won't be inside a stadium when the Games officially kick off in Paris. Instead, delegations will parade through downtown on the Seine River past some of the most famous landmarks in the world.
You can watch the historic opening ceremony live at 12:30 p.m. CDT, July 26 on KXAN with a preview show at 11 a.m. A Spanish-language broadcast will start at noon on Telemundo. The NBC Olympics team will provide additional coverage of the ceremony in primetime at 6:30 p.m.
The parade route is roughly 3.7 miles (6 kilometers) and begins at the Austerlitz bridge. It winds its way through the heart of Paris, splitting the two downtown islands — Île Saint Louis and Île de la Cité — while going by the Notre Dame cathedral before passing the Lourve museum. The route continues under several bridges until it hits the final destination, the Iéna bridge in front of the Eiffel Tower. The ceremony's finale is at the Trocadéro, across the Seine from the Eiffel Tower.
Crews began setting up grandstands along the route in mid-June and 80 monitors with speakers have been placed to "allow everyone to enjoy the magical atmosphere of this show reverberating throughout the French capital," according to the Olympics website.
More than 10,000 athletes from around the world will take part in the opening ceremony with hundreds of millions watching the worldwide broadcast. Organizers said 94 boats will be used for the delegations in the parade fleet.
