Previewing the Paris Summer Olympics: When does it start, how to watch

The 2024 Olympics get underway this week with opening ceremonies set for Friday in Paris. Here is a look at what will transpire over the next few weeks in Paris.

Competitions begin before the Opening Ceremony

While Friday marks the official start of the Olympics, several sports will begin competing on Wednesday. Among them, soccer and rugby will have events on Wednesday.

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Team USA's men's soccer team will open play Wednesday against France, while the women's team plays Thursday against Zambia. Soccer is among the sports that will go on for basically the entire duration of the Olympics.

What to expect from the Opening Ceremony

The Opening Ceremony will be unlike any other in recent history. Instead of being held inside of a stadium, Friday's events will take place along the River Seine. Officials said that there will be a four-mile-long flotilla of nearly 90 boats that will carry athletes from more than 200 countries past thousands of spectators.

The Opening Ceremony starts at noon ET in the U.S, which will be carried live on NBC and Peacock. NBC will rebroadcast the Opening Ceremony for primetime audiences later in the evening.

LeBron James will serve as the U.S. flag bearer for Friday's ceremonies.

Gender balance reached for first time

The International Olympic Committee said that the 2024 Games will mark the first time that an equal number of women and men will participate. According to IOC data, over 10,000 athletes will be invited to this year's Olympics.

There are also 331 medal events for the Olympics – 151 male events, 146 female events and 20 mixed-gender competitions. Among them, there will be new competitions held in break dancing, sport climbing, skateboarding, and surfing.

When is the Closing Ceremony?

Stade de France will host the Olympics' Closing Ceremony on August 11, starting at 1 p.m. ET.

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Counting medals

The U.S. will look to remain at the top of the medal count this summer. At the 2020 Tokyo Games, the U.S. led all nations with 39 gold medals and 113 overall medals. China ranked No. 2 with 38 golds and 89 overall.

The U.S. has had the most gold medals at the last three Summer Olympics and has led the overall count at the last seven Summer Olympics.

How to watch

NBC once again has exclusive rights to this year's Olympics. NBC says it will begin primetime coverage each night at 7:30 p.m. ET. Because of the time difference, these events will be shown on a tape-delayed basis.

NBC says primetime coverage will "typically begin with a gold medal victory from competition that day, showcasing a life-changing victory within the first 10 minutes of the program."

Those seeking live coverage of events can find it on Peacock, as well as NBC's cable properties such as USA Network, E!, CNBC, GOLF Channel, Telemundo, and Universo.