Originally scheduled for 2020, the Summer Olympics are set to begin Friday, July 23, 2021, in Tokyo.
The Olympics officially begin exactly 364 days after they were originally supposed to commence last summer. Organizers made the decision to postpone them last March, two weeks after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic.
The first day of competition is Wednesday, July 21 — soccer and softball start early. And because of the time difference, the very first event, a softball game between Australia and Japan, begins at 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday, July 20.
The opening ceremony is Friday, July 23 at the Olympic Stadium. It begins at 8 p.m. in Tokyo. NBC will air live coverage at 7 a.m. ET. Tokyo is 13 hours ahead of U.S. ET.
The closing ceremony is Sunday, August 8. Olympian Kara Winger will carry the U.S. flag. NBC (11 Alive in Atlanta) will air the closing ceremony at 8 p.m. Sunday. According to 11Alive.com, the live stream of the closing will be carried beginning at 7 a.m. Sunday on Peacock and NBCOlympics.com
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