(WCMH) — In an unprecedented plan, the Opening Ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics will make history by being the first to take place outside of a stadium.
An exclusive animation provided by NBC is giving fans a first look at how the spectacular event will come together in the City of Lights.
The clip opens with the Parade of Nations, showing athletes being ferried down the Seine towards the Eiffel Tower as the sun sets. The second part of the simulation depicts excited spectators surrounding Paris’s most iconic monument at night as spotlights and fireworks build excitement for the Games.
It was previously announced by NBCUniversal that the traditional march into the stadium by athletes from more than 200 countries will be replaced by the four-mile-long flotilla along the River Seine. Additionally, hundreds of thousands of onlookers are expected to line the city’s riverbanks.
Beyond the Opening Ceremony, several Olympic competitions have been planned to take place outside next to iconic Paris landmarks. For example, beach volleyball matches will take place at the Eiffel Tower, the Palace of Versailles will serve as the venue for equestrian events and urban sports will happen at Place de la Concorde. Furthermore, French Polynesia, nearly 10,000 miles away from Paris, will be tapped to host the surfing competition on the picturesque shores of Tahiti.
As an NBC affiliate, NBC4 is thrilled to bring viewers exclusive coverage and in-depth insights into the 2024 Paris Olympics, with this remarkable return to Olympic glory in the heart of one of the most enchanting cities on Earth.
NBC4 Today morning anchor Matt Barnes, will be headed to Paris this summer to provide live coverage of the games for the third time.
Barnes has reported live from the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Summer Games, which were delayed a year and held without spectators due to the coronavirus pandemic, and the Beijing Olympic Winter Games in 2022.