Olympics 2021 Opening Ceremony: Start Time, TV Channel, Live Stream Info For Tokyo Games

Even though some sports have already gotten underway, the Summer Games truly start with the Opening Ceremony. The event kicks off the Tokyo Olympics Friday morning, though it will be much more subdued compared to past years.

The Opening Ceremony starts at 8 p.m. local time in Tokyo at Japan’s New National Stadium. NBC will broadcast the event live in the United States at 7 a.m. EDT. Viewers will get another chance to watch it when it re-airs at 7:30 p.m. EDT on NBC, and then again at 1:30 a.m. EDT Saturday morning.

A live stream will be available at nbcolympics.com and with the NBC Sports app.

Spectators have been banned from the Games because of the spike in coronavirus cases in Japan, but the 68,000-seat venue won’t be completely empty for the Opening Ceremony. About 10,000 people, including members of the International Olympic Committee, diplomats and Olympic sponsors, are expected to attend the event.

About 11,000 athletes are set to compete at the Olympics, though not all of them will attend the Opening Ceremony. Fewer than 10% of Great Britain’s 376 Olympians will be at New National Stadium Friday night, along with about 50 of the nearly 500 Australian athletes.

Team USA women's basketball star Sue Bird and baseball player Eddy Alvarez will be the United States flag bearers for the Tokyo Olympics Opening Ceremony.

"It’s an incredible honor to be selected the flag bearer for Team USA," Bird said Wednesday. "I know what that means, because I got to witness Dawn Staley go through it when she was selected in 2004. It’s an honor that is bigger than the moment in that you’ve been selected by your fellow Team USA athletes to represent the entire delegation, and it will last forever."

According to Yahoo Sports, more than 230 of Team USA's 613 athletes are expected to march during the Opening Ceremony.