Olympics Day 1 briefing: LeBron James and Coco Gauff lead Team USA into Paris

The 2024 Summer Olympics officially kicked off on Friday with a visually stunning opening ceremony in Paris that included the athletes entering on a boat tour down the Seine river, a Celine Dion performance on top of the Eiffel Tower, a French metal band performing with the visual of a headless Marie Antoinette , Snoop Dogg and LeBron James and Coco Gauff serving as the flag bearers for Team USA.

It was a scene to say the least.

The visual of James holding the American flag at the front of a rain-soaked boat as Team USA made its entrance was certainly a sight to behold.

James is the first men's basketball player to be a flag bearer for Team USA at any Olympics. This is a big tournament for him and the men's team as it will be the first time that him, Steph Curry and Kevin Durant — three of the best players from this era who spent years competing for championships and MVPs — will unite on the same team. Given their ages, it will also probably the only time they play together at the Olympics.

Gauff, one of the best tennis players in the world, was chosen to be the female flag bearer for Team USA.

The festivities officially started with the lighting of the Olympic cauldron, which might be one of the most creative cauldron's in the history of the games — it is a giant hot air balloon suspended over the city.

Three big things about Team USA

1. Katie Ledecky swimming for history. When it comes to dominance, few athletes on Team USA are better than Ledecky. She not only wins her races in the pool, she is typically the only person on the TV screen because she is always so far ahead of every other competitor. She enters Paris in 2024 with a chance to make history as she attempts to accumulate more medals. Ledecky can set a record for most career medals by an American woman, entering Paris with 10 and sitting just two away from the all-time record. Her seven gold medals are just one behind Jenny Thompson for the most ever by an American woman in any sport.

2. Noah Lyles will get a big challenge in track's signature event. One of the most anticipated events in any summer Olympic is the 100-meter dash, and the Americans have the reigning world champion in Lyles competing. But despite his victory at the world championships, he still enters the Olympics as an underdog to Jamaica's Kishane Thompson. Lyles is not only hoping to win; he wants to break Usain Bolt's 2009 world record .

3. Sha’carri Richardson's redemption. This has to feel like a huge opportunity for Richardson after she missed out on an opportunity to run in the Tokyo Olympics after testing positive for THC prior to her departure for the Games. She is back in 2024 and is looking to claim gold in the 100-meter, especially after posting some of her best times in the lead-up to Paris.

You won't believe this

Of all the stunning visuals to come out of the opening ceremony, perhaps the greatest of them all was a performance from recording legend Celine Dion on top of the Eiffel Tower.