Watch Rio Olympics 2016 opening Ceremony online

Friday, August 5^th, marks the start of the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro

For months people questioned whether the games would actually take place; would the Olympic Park be ready in time? Would the Zika virus prove too dangerous for the athletes and spectators? Would the political turmoil and economic collapse bring the entire event to a standstill?

But now those questions come to an end as athletes, tourists, dignitaries, and journalists from around the world gather in Rio to kick off two weeks of friendly competition. The Olympic Games are expected to draw billions of viewers worldwide

The 2016 Olympics will run from August 5^th until August 21^st and will feature 42 sports, 306 total events, 136 medals for women, and 161 medals for men. About 10,500 athletes are expected to compete in the Olympics in Rio, including the first Olympic team composed entirely of refugees

Here is a guide for the next two weeks

How to watch

More than 2,000 hours of Olympic events are scheduled to air over the course of the next two weeks. While not all events will be aired on TV, NBC is stated to stream an additional 4,500 hours of Olympic coverage on its website, with concurrent streams for competitions going on at the same time. However, after a 30-minute grace period, NBC will require users to log on with their TV providers.

The schedule

Opening ceremony: Friday, August 5^th, at 7 pm Eastern at the Maracanã Stadium (NBC will stream the show at a one-hour delay on the East Coast, at 8 pm Eastern, and at a four-hour delay on the West Coast, at 8 pm Pacific)

While most of the events will start on or after the opening ceremony, the Olympic games kicked off on August 3^rd with soccer. The US women’s soccer team won its Olympic opening match against New Zealand. (The US men’s soccer team failed to qualify for the Olympics this year.)

The much-anticipated women’s gymnastics, all-around the world, final is scheduled for Thursday, August 11^th, at 3 pm Eastern

Closing Ceremony: Sunday, August 21^st, at 7 pm Eastern at Maracanã Stadium