It may have taken NBC five hours (no, really) to get to it, but Rio’s display for the Olympic flame almost made that wait worthwhile.
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Pita Nikolas Aufatofua of Tonga carries the flag during the Opening Ceremony of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at Maracana Stadium on August 5, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Swimmer Michael Phelps, the 22-time Olympic medalist, carried the flag for the American team, which arrived earlier in the lineup than usual because Estados Unidos is the Portuguese spelling of United States. Germany will be represented by 423 athletes.
There were symbolic pleas for peace and tolerance – a nod to world events beyond Brazil.
As the clock ticked down to the start of the ceremony, thousands of demonstrators took to the streets to vent their fury at Brazil’s rulers and the multi-billion-dollar cost of the Games. It was simple, classy and effective. “Wow”, said Bryan Hossy, a black Brazilian who watched the ceremony in a bar in Copacabana. The nautical number can take you from day to night or Olympic Opening Ceremony to a cousin’s wedding.
Later, MC Sofia, a 12-year-old rapper from Sao Paulo, rapped about Brazil’s history of slavery and racial division.
Performers jumped and danced across projections of giant buildings, symbolising the cities of Brazil, while a recreation of a 14-bis biplane – the invention of Brazilian Alberto Santos-Dumont – drew one of the biggest cheers of the evening as it flew out of the arena.
A video of Alberto Santos-Dumont, a pioneer of powered flight, cruising over the Rio night sky was a nice touch as the Maracana cleared the way for a sprinkling of stardust.
Supermodel Gisele Bundchen shimmered to the tune of “The Girl from Ipanema”. It was officially party time.
International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach acknowledged earlier this week that the road to the Rio Games had been “long and testing”, and the preparations were “challenging”.
This was followed by a gear-change as organisers warned of environmental Armageddon, complete with a map of Rio’s beaches being submerged by rising waters.
A further simple but effective moment was a recital of “A Flor e a Nausea”, read by British actress Judi Dench, a poem which announces hope for the future.
The Portuguese bobbed to shore in boats, the African slaves rolled in on wheels and together they ploughed through the forests and planted the seeds of modern Brazil.
It’s the first time the Games has been held in South America. China has dominated the air rifle and pistol shooting events at the Olympics, earning nine gold medals since the 2000 Sydney Games. The majority of protesters seemed to be supporters of Rousseff, chanting “Dilma, ole, ole, ole” repeatedly.
The demonstrators also took aim at the Summer Games, saying a huge amount of money spent on staging the Olympics would have been better spent on development projects.
Following Temer, IOC President Bach tried to smooth things over with his speech. “We are living in a world of crises, mistrust and uncertainty”, he said.
Day two of the Rio Games proved quite the breeze for some athletes and much too windy for others.
The actual Central Intelligence Agency turned the opening ceremony into a giant quiz.
With that, the cauldron – one unlike any other in Olympic history – was lit.
In one last flourish, the Olympic flame was brought into Maracana Stadium by Brazilian tennis champion Gustavo Kuerten, handed off to retired basketball star Hortencia Marcari to Vanderlei Cordeiro de Lima, the marathoner who lost gold when he was attacked during the 2004 Summer Games.
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With that the show was over and the Olympics had begun.
