Paris Olympics 2024 top storylines: Team USA basketball, Simone Biles, Sha'Carri Richardson, Opening Ceremony

The Summer Olympics are in Paris for the first time in exactly 100 years, and Paris 2024 promises to be one full of athletic excellence and drama that can't be found anywhere else.

With new sports, plenty of stars and rising rivalries in men's basketball, swimming and other sports, "Games wide open" is a fitting motto for the latest installment of the world's games. With that in mind, here are 10 major storylines ahead of the games.

1. Unprecedented Opening Ceremony takes to the water

For the first time in Olympic Summer Games history, the Opening Ceremony will be somewhere other than a stadium. Instead, roughly 10,500 athletes, representing 206 countries and transported by nearly 100 boats, will take to the Seine, the iconic river that runs through Paris. The backdrop will include some of the city's most recognizable landmarks, such as the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre and the Notre Dame Cathedral.

Organizers are expecting at least 600,000 spectators on the route, which stretches nearly four miles. French president Emmanuel Macron will deliver remarks at the parade's conclusion.

The Opening Ceremony starts at 7:30 p.m. local time (1:30 p.m. ET).

2. But what about the water?

The athletes, performers and delegates, of course, will be on boats for the ceremonies. But once the games get started, the plan is for open-water swimmers to actually enter the water of the Seine, something that was unthought of a decade ago and seemed unlikely even a month ago.

Swimming in the Seine was banned in 1923 due to high pollution levels, and, despite several promises to clean the water up, little was done about that until 2015. Since then, more than $1.5 billion has been invested in cleaning up the river not just for the Games but for after the Games. That plan included "constructing a giant underground water storage basin in central Paris, renovating sewer infrastructure, and upgrading wastewater treatment plants," per the Associated Press .

Even in late June, the Seine's E. coli bacteria levels were 10 times the acceptable limit . However, recent results from water quality surveillance company Fluidion show E. coli levels are significantly down, so much so that Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo swam in the Seine on July 17, days after France's sport minister Amelie Oudea Castera did the same.

While questions remain -- and backup plans are in place -- the Seine is expected to host two events: the swimming portion of the triathlons (July 30, July 31 and Aug. 5) and the marathon swimming events (Aug. 8, 9).

3. France, Canada, others look to challenge Team USA men's basketball

Team USA men's basketball is the heavy favorite as it looks for its fifth straight gold medal, but the Americans have looked far from the sum of their incredibly talented parts. Despite a 4-0 record so far in its pre-Olympic showcase, they barely held off Australia and needed a late game-winner from LeBron James to beat South Sudan , a country that played its first major international tournament in 2021.

The strongest competition figures to come from Canada -- which the U.S. beat a week and a half ago -- and the host nation, France. Rookie of the Year Victor Wembanyama and Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert lead a supersized front line, and there's plenty of NBA experience around them. Canada boasts an elite backcourt in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jamal Murray and plenty of standout wing defenders. Germany, meanwhile, won the FIBA World Cup in 2023.

Nikola Jokic (Serbia) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece) -- who have won five of the last six NBA MVPs -- are also looking to lead their teams to gold. Here's CBS Sports' Olympic men's basketball Power Rankings.

4. Simone Biles looks for redemption

Arguably the greatest gymnast of all time, Simone Biles takes to the Olympic games for the third time, making her the most experienced gymnast on the United States team. But she's joined by fellow Olympic vets Suni Lee, Jade Carey and Jordan Chiles. Hezly Rivera, 16, rounds out the group.

But all eyes will be on Biles, who earned four Olympic golds (team, all-around, vault, floor) in the 2016 Rio games. In 2021 in Tokyo, Biles developed the "twisties," when things are just not quite right and the body is out of rhythm, a mentally and physically daunting condition when trying to perform such exacting movements while flying through the air. Biles withdrew from the team event, and the United States finished second in the team event behind the Russian athletes.

On the men's side, defending world champion Brody Malone leads the way for the United States. Frederick Richard, Asher Hong, Paul Juda and Stephen Nedoroscik will join him .

5. Sha'Carri Richardson, Noah Lyles seek golds, validation

Sha'Carri Richardson and Noah Lyles headline U.S. track and field athletes looking to improve upon tough experiences at the Tokyo Games.

Richardson, a 100-meter runner, wasn't even in Tokyo. After qualifying for the Games at trials, Richardson received a positive drug test result for cannabis and was ruled ineligible for the Games. She completed a counseling program and a suspension and has come back better. She won the 2023 World Championships over big names Shericka Jackson and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and also won at US Olympic Trials for the second straight time last month. Now, she finally takes to the Olympic Games.

Lyles, meanwhile, finished a disappointing bronze medalist in the 200 meter in Tokyo. Afterward, Lyles disclosed the mental health struggles he had been dealing with, brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and the murder of George Floyd. He has dominated since then, winning gold at the World Athletics Championships in 2022 and 2023, and he also won gold in the 100 meter in 2023.

6. USA, Australia renew swimming rivalry

There's been no love lost between the United State and Australia in the pool, something that has intensified in the past year or so: Australian Cate Campbell stoked the flames last summer .

Campbell had good reason to talk some trash after the 2023 World Aquatic Championships, when Australia won 13 gold medals compared to the United States' seven. The United States, however, has taken home the most Olympic swimming medals and the most Olympic swimming gold medals in each of the last eight Olympics. Australia ranks second in both categories over that span.

7. Katie Ledecky looks for history

If Katie Ledecky has anything to say about it, the U.S.'s spot atop worldwide swimming will remain. Ledecky has 10 Olympic medals in her distinguished career, two from tying Dara Torres, Jenny Thompson and Natalie Coughlin for most by a female swimmer. Seven of Ledecky's 10 Olympic medals are gold.

Ledecky is a distance specialist and absolutely dominant in the 800 and 1500 -- she holds the world's top 10 times in the 1500 -- and will be a big part of the U.S.'s relay teams too.

8. USWNT looks to regain footing under new manager

After its worst Women's World Cup ever, the United States women's national soccer team hit a major reset and hired star coach Emma Hayes from Chelsea.

The U.S. women haven't looked particularly good in their pre-Olympic matches, having recently drawn Costa Rica, 0-0, after defeating Mexico, 1-0. It's still far, far too early to judge things just four games into Hayes' spell with the USWNT. That will likely remain the same regardless of how far the USWNT goes.

But it'd be nice to see the offense find its footing , especially with plenty of stars in Sophia Smith, Trinity Rodman, Mallory Swanson and Jaedyn Shaw.

Canada is the reigning gold medalist, but Spain is the favorite for gold as the reigning World Cup winner. You can follow all the action here.

On the men's side, Thierry Henry's French side are the favorites with Argentina, Spain and plenty of other usual suspects near the top. The United States men are back at the Olympics for the first time since 2008 .

One key thing to keep in mind is that in men's soccer, 15 of the 18 players must have been born on or after January 1, 2001, so this is really a place for young stars to shine, especially after a busy summer for older players at Euros or Copa America. Julián Álvarez, one of Argentina's three players over the age limit, played hero in Copa America by grabbing the extra-time winner in the final against Colombia. He'll look for an impressive summer double.

9. Xander Schauffele, Scottie Scheffler among stars in men's golf

Fresh off his British Open triumph, Xander Schauffele looks to defend his gold medal in men's golf, but he'll have plenty of competition. That includes fellow American Scottie Scheffler, who is No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking and has six PGA Tour wins this season.

Other top names in the field include Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland), Ludvig Åberg (Sweden), Viktor Hovland (Norway), Jon Rahm (Spain) and Collin Morikawa (USA). Matthieu Pavon is the top-ranked Frenchmen looking to defend home turf at Le Golf National.

10. Men's, women's tennis brings plenty of star power

Roland Garros is doubling up, hosting the Olympic tennis tournament after hosting the French Open (per usual) in late May and early June.

On the men's side, Carlos Alcaraz has won the last two Grand Slams (including the French Open) and is among the favorites (if not the favorite), with Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev and Novak Djokovic among the other headliners. Zverev -- the 2020 gold medalist -- and Alcaraz met in the French Open final; Djokovic and Alcaraz met in the Wimbledon semifinal. Andy Murray, a two-time gold medalist, will say farewell to the Games. So will the King of the Clay, Rafael Nadal, who will play singles and team up with Alcaraz in doubles.

On the women's side, it's Iga Swiatek and everyone else when it comes to clay courts, so she's the prohibitive favorite. Coco Gauff, Elena Rybakina and Wimbledon champ Barbora Krejcikova are also among the top names.

11. Introducing the new sports

The Olympics are timeless, but they're also ever-adapting. As such, we get new events coming our way:

• Breaking, better known as break dancing (b-boys and b-girls)
• Kayak cross

Skateboarding, 3x3 basketball, sport climbing and surfing also return after debuting in 2020. The surfing events will take place about as far away as one can get from Paris, French Polynesia, which is located in the South Pacific Ocean.