September 20, 2024

How to watch the Tokyo Olympics, starting with the opening ceremony on July 23

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  • The 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo will run from July 23 to August 8 after a one-year delay.
  • The opening ceremony will broadcast live on July 23 at 6:55 a.m. ET, with a primetime replay.
  • NBC will provide live coverage on its networks, along with highlights on its Peacock streaming service.
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    The Tokyo Olympic Games will hold its opening ceremonies on July 23 after a one-year delay, welcoming thousands of athletes from 205 countries and states. The international competition will continue through August 8 with events from 33 different sports.

    NBC will be the primary broadcaster for the Olympics in the United States, including the opening ceremonies and daily coverage. The Tokyo Opening Ceremony will be broadcast live on July 23 at 6:55 a.m. ET on NBC, with a primetime replay scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET. The opening ceremony will include special performances by Japanese artists, the parade of nations, and the lighting of the Olympic torch.

    Live broadcasts and streamed events from Tokyo will be available every day on NBC and other NBC affiliate networks. You can find a daily schedule for all 33 sports at NBCOlympics.com, but the broadcast details for each event haven’t been set yet. Free highlights will also be available on Peacock, NBC’s streaming service.

    Because the event was originally planned for last year, this year’s Summer Olympics are still being called the Tokyo 2020 Games. Japan hosted the Winter Olympics in 1998, and last hosted the summer games in 1964. International fans can’t enter the country for the Olympics because of ongoing concerns with the COVID-19 pandemic, but local spectators will attend with restricted crowds.

    How to watch the Olympics Sha’Carri Richardson was a favorite among US Olympics qualifiers, but her place on the team is in doubt following reports of a positive cannabis test. Patrick Smith/Getty Images

    The opening ceremony for the Tokyo Olympics will be broadcast live on July 23 at 6:55 a.m. ET on NBC. The ceremony will be rebroadcast multiple times starting at 7:30 p.m. ET on July 23 for primetime audiences  You can watch the opening ceremony on your local NBC affiliate station, or stream it via NBCOlympics.com and the NBC Sports app.

    Olympic coverage will be spread across multiple NBC Networks, including NBC Sports Network, CNBC, the Olympic Channel, the Golf Channel, and USA; Telemundo and Universo will carry Spanish language coverage. NBC’s streaming service Peacock will feature daily highlights, docuseries, and commentary for free.

    The NBC Sports and Peacock apps are available on iOS and Android devices, Roku, Amazon Fire, Xbox, web browsers, and select smart TVs. You can visit NBCOlympics.com to view the daily Olympics schedule, but NBC still has to announce which channels will broadcast specific events. We’ll update this page with detailed schedule information once it’s available.

    If you don’t already have a cable or TV provider, you can use a live TV streaming service like YouTube TV, Hulu Live TV, Sling TV, or FuboTV to watch channels like NBC, NBC Sports, and USA. Of those options, Sling’s Blue plan is the most affordable at $35 a month ($10 for your first month).

    Key dates for the Tokyo Olympics US swimming star Katie Ledecky has won five Olympic gold medals, the most for any female swimmer. Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images

  • July 21 — Olympic competition begins with softball and soccer matches
  • July 23 — Tokyo Olympics Opening Ceremony
  • July 24 to July 31 — Swimming: daily coverage at 9:30 p.m. ET
  • July 27 — Gymnastics: Women’s team final, 6:45 a.m. ET
  • July 29 — Gymnastics: Women’s individual all-around, 6:50 a.m. ET
  • July 31 — Track and Field: Women’s 100-meter finals, 6 a.m. ET
  • August 1 — Track and Field: Men’s 100-meter finals, 6 a.m. ET
  • August 6 — Basketball: Men’s gold medal game, 10:30 p.m. ET
  • August 8 — Last day of the Tokyo Olympics
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