The 2024 Paris Olympics officially got underway on Friday with nearly 7,000 athletes cruising the River Seine.
About 85 boats floated by the Louvre, Notre-Dame Cathedral, the Eiffel Tower and other iconic Paris landmarks in the Opening Ceremony, marking the first time the celebration was not held inside a stadium.
Here is a live blog of the sights and sounds of the 2024 Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony:
Zinedine Zidane, one of the biggest names in French soccer history, is the first major figure to appear in a video leading up to the Parade of Nations. Does that take him out of contention to light the Olympic cauldron at the end of the night?
And we're off! Blue, white and red smoke fills the air at the start of the parade route.
LADY GAGA, EVERYBODY! The international star gives a dazzling performance of “Mon Truc En Plume,” translating to "My Thing Made of Feathers," on the banks of the Seine. This song was the signature number of the late Zizi Jeanmaire, a beloved entertainer in France.
Music fans are getting a little bit of everything tonight. Further down the Seine, a long line of can-can dancers perform in bright pink ensembles. The Moulin Rouge cabaret in Paris is known as the birthplace of the dance.
If that's not for you, how about some heavy metal? French band Gojira provides the soundtrack to the "liberty" portion of the evening, illustrating revolution in France. My face is sufficiently melted.
We have an appearance by the Minions from Despicable Me, and yet Paris' most accomplished chef, Ratatouille, is nowhere to be found. Who do I have to fight around here?
We're sending this guy to go find Ratatouille.
(Kidding.)
But this tightrope walker is one of 2,000 performers and artists contributing to the Opening Ceremony spectacle, and in the rain, no less.
You have one job when standing at the front of a watercraft. Great Britain's Tom Daley and Helen Glover know the deal.
A'ja Wilson's future is so bright, she gets to wear the Olympic rings as shades.
Delegations are making their way to the end of the parade route at the Trocadero, a plaza with views of the Eiffel Tour. The rain has only intensified since the start of the Opening Ceremony.
How to pass the time on the parade route? Steph Curry is working on his Olympic pin collection. It's a long-standing Olympic tradition to trade pins with athletes from different countries and sports.
After a stirring symphonic interlude, a white horse brings the Olympic flag into the Trocadero. Flags representing every delegation line up behind the horse on the walk into the plaza.
Zinedine Zidane reappears with the Olympic torch for a handoff to tennis great Rafael Nadal. Nadal is from Spain, but has won the French Open at Roland-Garros a record 14 times, so that's about as close as it gets to his home turf.
An Eiffel Tower light show distracts us – or at least me – long enough to put Nadal and the Olympic torch on a boat with Serena Williams (23-time tennis Grand Slam singles champion), Carl Lewis (nine-time Olympic gold medalist in track & field) and Nadia Comaneci (the first gymnast to earn a perfect 10.0 at the Olympics). Where is the cauldron waiting to be lit? The drama!
We are back at the Louvre, where the Olympic torch is passed off to a few more French athletes, including former tennis world No. 1 Amélie Mauresmo, four-time NBA champ Tony Parker, and Charles Coste, France's oldest living Olympic medalist. The former cyclist turned 100 in February.
Two three-time Olympic gold medalists, Teddy Riner (judo) and Marie-José Pérec (track & field), end up with the ultimate honor of lighting the cauldron together.
More drama! The cauldron was simply the base of a hot air balloon. Off it goes, and just in time for INTERNATIONAL TREASURE CELINE DION to appear on stage at the base of the Eiffel Tower. What. A. FINALE.
Massive kudos go out to Thomas Jolly, the artistic director of the Opening and Closing Ceremonies for the Olympics and Paralympics. He started working on all four events in 2022, and after seeing the incredible details of tonight’s event, it’s amazing it didn’t take longer for the Opening Ceremony alone. Take a bow, Thomas!
And if you read all the way to the end, kudos to you! Thanks for joining us for a spectacular night of Olympic celebration.
Let the Games begin!