The Paris Olympic Games are set to kick off on July 26 with a groundbreaking opening ceremony, the first to be held outside a stadium. This much-anticipated event will take place along the Seine River.
Instead of the traditional stadium parade, athletes will parade in boats along the Seine. Around 100 boats will carry an estimated 10,500 athletes, passing iconic Parisian landmarks. The 206 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) participating in the Summer Games will either have their own boats or share them if they are smaller contingents.
Venue:
The parade will start at the Austerlitz Bridge, next to the Jardin des Plantes, and continue westward along the river for 6 kilometers. It will pass through iconic bridges and landmarks like Notre-Dame and the Louvre, and some venues of the Games, including the Esplanade des Invalides and the Grand Palais. The boats will arrive opposite the Trocadero, where the protocols will take place, culminating in the lighting of the Olympic cauldron to declare the Games open.
Opening Ceremony Schedule:
The opening ceremony will take place on July 26, starting at 19:30 CEST (11 PM IST), and will last for over three hours.
Where to Watch:
France has made arrangements for 600,000 people to watch the ceremony in person. For those at home, the event can be viewed in India through Viacom18 Media Private Limited (Viacom18), which holds the exclusive media rights for the Paris Games, including Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. In India, the opening ceremony can be watched on the Sports 18 network, with live streaming available on the Jio Cinema app and website.
