As has become tradition, the ceremony starts with a celebration of the host country, followed by the parade of athletes.

Why does Greece come out first in the Olympic Games opening ceremony?

Greece always enters the stadium first and leads the parade to honour its status as the birthplace of the Olympics.

Athens was chosen as the host city when the Olympic Games were first revived in 1896.

The Greek team, and their flag, also enter first at every Summer and Winter Olympic Games.

The order of the parade of nations at every Olympics is as follows.

Greece comes in first due to their role in the origin of the Olympics.
The host nation comes in last — in 2020, this will be Japan

The rest of the nations are ordered alphabetically by the language of the host nation — As a result of this, Afghanistan was the first nation after Greece, followed by South Africa (África do Sul in Portuguese). Zambia will be the 207th and final nation before the host nation, Japan.

Why is the Greek flag flown at the Olympic Games closing ceremony?

The Greek flag is always flown during the closing ceremony to recognise ancient Greece's role in creating the Olympic Games.

From 776 BC, the games were held annually in Greece in honour of the god Zeus.

This continued for over a thousand years until 393AD when the last recorded celebration was held under Roman Empire Theodosius.

Only freeborn Greek men were allowed to compete, though women were allowed to own chariots.

Usain Bolt participates in unveiling the torch for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

Superstar Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt has taken part in the unveiling of the official torch for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

The official design for the 2024 torch was displayed for the first time on the river Seine in Paris, marking one year before the games get underway.

Paris’ famous Eiffel Tower inspired the design, and according to its designer, is supposed to reflect the peacefulness and equality among athletes.

The eight-time gold medallist says he is looking forward to the Paris games despite not taking to the track himself.

The torch is a champagne colour that features a curved pattern to mimic the movement of the Seine, along which the opening ceremony will be held.