How to Watch the Tokyo Olympics Opening Ceremony

Let the Games begin! 

The Tokyo Olympics, after being postponed for a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, finally commence on July 23 with the majesty of the Opening Ceremony at Tokyo’s Olympic Stadium.

That will kick off the two-week global competition that features thousands of athletes, hundreds of countries and a record 339 medal events in 41 different sports.  

Here’s where to watch the 2021 Olympic Opening Ceremony:

What channel is the Tokyo Olympics Opening Ceremony on? 

The 2021 Olympics Opening Ceremony will begin at 8 p.m. local time in Japan. 

With the United States’ Eastern Standard Time being 13 hours behind Japan, it’s going to be an early morning for those in the U.S. who want to watch the ceremony live. NBC’s live coverage in the United States will begin around 6:55 a.m. ET.

The 2021 Tokyo Opening ceremony will re-air in primetime at 7:30 p.m. ET, and again overnight. 

Does the Tokyo Olympics Opening Ceremony have a TV schedule?

NBC’s networks and streaming services has a comprehensive TV schedule featuring more than 5,000 hours of live content from the Tokyo Olympics. 

That includes NBC, NBCSN, CNBC, USA Network, the Olympic Channel, the Golf Channel, Telemundo Deportes, NBCOlympics.com and Peacock. 

NBC will offer comprehensive coverage of the Opening Ceremony, which will air live on the network across all time zones as part of a full day of Olympic programming. It begins with the live morning broadcast of the ceremony, followed by a special edition of “TODAY” and NBC’s first Daytime Olympic show.

How can I watch 2021 Olympics coverage without cable?

The Tokyo Opening Ceremony can also be streamed on Peacock, NBCOlympics.com and the NBC Sports app.

For the full event schedule, click here.

What happens during the Olympics Opening Ceremony?

Tokyo’s Opening Ceremony will include plenty of pageantry and live performances that put the culture of Japan on full display, including the raising of the host nation’s flag and singing of the national anthem. 

The evening is highlighted by the Parade of Nations, where thousands of Olympians representing more than 200 countries march into the stadium under their nation’s flag.  

The Olympic torch relay will reach its final destination, the culmination of a 121-day journey through Japan at the hands of over 10,000 torchbearers. The flame has remained lit since March 2020 following the postponement of the Olympics. The Japanese leg of the relay began on March 25, 2021, starting in Fukushima and passing through all 47 of Japan’s prefectures.

Its final stop is Tokyo Olympics Stadium, where one of the host nation’s most prestigious honorees uses the torch to light the Olympic cauldron. There, the flame will remain lit for the duration of the Games.   

How many events are in the Tokyo Olympics? 

One Olympic record already has been broken: the number of scheduled medal events at the Games. 

The Tokyo Olympics will feature a record 339 events across 42 venues and 41 sports. New medal events include men’s and women’s 3x3 basketball, women’s featherweight and welterweight boxing, karate, skateboarding, surfing and more. 

Competition begins prior to the Opening Ceremony, with softball and soccer scheduled for July 21. The first medals of the Games will be awarded on July 24 to the top performers in the women’s 10m air rifle shooting event. The Games conclude on Aug. 8 with the Closing Ceremony.