WITH fireworks, flags and dodgy outfits guaranteed – the Olympics opening ceremony is always a MUST watch. There are plenty of bizarre rituals to get your head around but mostly, just sit back and enjoy the show. When is the opening ceremony? The opening ceremony starts on Friday, July 23. The party starts at 12 […]
WITH fireworks, flags and dodgy outfits guaranteed – the Olympics opening ceremony is always a MUST watch.
There are plenty of bizarre rituals to get your head around but mostly, just sit back and enjoy the show.
The opening ceremony starts on Friday, July 23.
The party starts at 12 noon in the UK and 8pm in Tokyo.
It won’t technically be the first action of the Games though, with sporting events starting two days before – including Team GB, with the women’s team opening their football campaign against Chile on Wednesday, July 21.
Unlike the last Olympics at Rio in 2016, where there was only a four hour time difference, Tokyo will instead be eight hours ahead.
In previous years, every athlete from each nations stems into the stadium when their country is announced – however with all the Covid-19 regulations in place, it remains to see exactly how many athletes from each nation will be present at the opening ceremony.
Either way, the event is scheduled to last three hours from 8pm to 11pm in Japan.
The opening ceremony will take place at the Olympic Stadium in Shinjuku City, Tokyo.
The stadium was also used for the 1964 Olympic games held in Japan, but don’t worry, the stadium itself has had plenty of renovation to suit the needs of all safety measures.
The stadium can fit a capacity of 68,000 people, although only a minority of that will be filled due to all the social distancing implications present.
Crowds will be capped at either 50 per-cent or a maximum of 10,000 people for the entire Tokyo Games across all events – so expect to see only 10,000 at the opening ceremony.
TOKYO OLYMPICS LIVE: All the latest from the Games with our live blog
WHAT’S ON TODAY? Best bits to watch at the Olympics and UK times for your favourite stars
The BBC and Eurosport have the rights to broadcast the Olympics this year.
As well as being broadcast live on BBC One, the opening ceremony will also be available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
Extra coverage will be on the BBC Red Button and the BBC Sport website.
