WASHINGTON — Paris is hosting the Olympics for the first time in a century, promising a stellar two weeks of athletic excellence.
Innovation is at the forefront of the 2024 Summer Games as several new sports will debut. For the first time ever, the Olympics will feature equal numbers of female and male athletes, and track and field gold medalists will receive prize money directly from Olympic revenues.
Paris' innovations will be displayed during the opening ceremony, when athletes will parade along the River Seine during the first-of-its-kind event.
When is the Olympics Opening Ceremony?
The Olympics Opening Ceremony will take place at sunset on Friday, July 26.
What time does the Olympics Opening Ceremony start in the U.S.?
The 2024 Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony officially begins at 7:30 p.m. local time in Paris. That means it will start at 1:30 p.m. Eastern, 12:30 p.m. Central, 11:30 a.m. Mountain and 10:30 a.m. Pacific.
Thousands of athletes will sail along the River Seine toward the Eiffel Tower in a flotilla. It will be the first time in the Games' modern history that the Opening Ceremony is outside a stadium setting.
Roughly 94 boats, one for each national delegation, will parade along the river as the ceremony's opening act.
After the boat parade, the Olympic protocols — which have been in place for 124 years —and final shows will take place.
The ambitious idea was to bring the tone-setting spectacle out of an expensively ticketed stadium and into the city where many more people can see it. A crowd of 320,000 people is expected on the riverbanks along the 6-kilometer (3.7-mile) route from Pont d’Austerlitz to Pont d’Iéna.
Unlike previous ceremonies, tickets will be free for about 220,000 invited and security-screened spectators watching from the upper river bank.
About 100,000 paying spectators, including lavish hospitality packages, will watch from the lower riverside and around the Trocadéro plaza — where the parade will end looking across to the Eiffel Tower.
The original plan for 600,000 spectators allowed for more spontaneity in the city but less security.
French President Emmanuel Macron has acknowledged the river-borne parade could be moved if the city is struck again by terrorists as it was in 2015.
“Since we are professional, there are obviously plan Bs, plan Cs, et cetera,” Macron said in December.
How long is the Opening Ceremony?
For an opening ceremony dubbing itself as "the largest in Games history," expect the celebrations to go long.
"The philosophy and ceremonial aspects which surround the Olympic Games distinguish them from all other international sports events," the Olympics official page reads. "Through music, song, dance and fireworks, the opening and closing ceremonies invite people to discover the culture of the country in which the Games are taking place. "
Nearly 1.5 billion viewers are expected to watch the Opening Ceremony, which will be broadcasted worldwide, according to the Olympics official site.
The Tokyo Games in 2021 took approximately four hours, NBC reports.
What channel is the 2024 Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony on?
NBC and Peacock will have live coverage of the Opening Ceremony on Friday, July 26, beginning at Noon Eastern.
Telemundo will also provide Spanish-language coverage beginning at 1 p.m. ET.
Primetime coverage of the Opening Ceremony will begin at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT on NBC and Peacock.
Who is hosting at the Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony?
Singer Kelly Clarkson and NFL legend Peyton Manning will join sportscaster Mike Tirico in Paris as hosts of NBC's Opening Ceremony coverage along the Seine.
When is the Closing Ceremony?
The Closing Ceremony on Aug. 11 is scheduled in the Stade de France national arena after it hosts track and field in the final week.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.