2016 Summer Olympics opening ceremony

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2016 Summer Olympics

Template:2016 Summer Olympics
The opening ceremony of the 2016 Summer Olympic Games will take place on the evening of Friday 5 August 2016 in the Maracanã Stadium, Rio de Janeiro starting at 20:00 BRT (23:00 UTC). As mandated by the Olympic Charter, the proceedings will combine the formal ceremonial opening of this international sporting event (including welcoming speeches, hoisting of the flags and the parade of athletes) with an artistic spectacle to showcase the host nation’s culture. Around 78,000 spectators are expected to witness the Rio 2016 Opening Ceremony LIVE from the Maracanã Stadium.

## Venue

Main article: Maracanã Stadium
For the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics and Paralympics, a major reconstruction project was initiated for the Maracanã Stadium. The original seating bowl, with a two-tier configuration, was demolished, giving way to a new one-tier seating bowl. The original stadium's roof in concrete was removed and replaced with a fiberglass tensioned membrane coated with Polytetrafluoroethylene. The new roof covers 95% of the seats inside the stadium, unlike the former design, where protection was only afforded to some seats in the upper ring and those above the gate access of each sector.

## The ceremony

See also: 2016 Summer Olympics Parade of Nations
Fernando Meirelles said in September 2015 that the ceremony will be a vision of the country "and what I hope it will become". Meirelles said he will try to steer away from cliches, but not all of them; for example, the carnival has been confirmed to be a part of the ceremony.

## Anthems

* Paulinho da Viola - Hino Nacional Brasileiro - National Anthem of Brazil
* Template:Country data IOC TBA- Olympic Hymn - Official Hymn of the IOC

Katy Perry - "Rise"

## Officials and guests

Early estimates indicated that at least 100 heads of state or government were planning to attend the opening ceremony. However, some foreign leaders have been slow to commit to their attendance because of the ongoing political issues and other issues affecting the Games.

* Mauricio Macri (Argentine President)
* File:Flag of Colombia.svg Juan Manuel Santos (Colombian President)
* Miloš Zeman (Czech President)
* Francois Hollande (French President)
* File:Flag of Hungary.svg.png János Áder (Hungarian President)
* Mark Rutte (Dutch Prime Minister)
* Edith Schippers (Dutch Minister)
* Willem-Alexander (Dutch King)
* Matteo Renzi (Italian Prime Minister)
* File:Flag of Paraguay.svg.png Horacio Cartes (Paraguayan President)
* File:Flag of Portugal.svg.png Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa (Portuguese president)
* Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani (Qatari Emir)
* Tomislav Nikolić (Serbian President)
* Template:Country data UN Ban Ki-moon (UN Secretary-General)
* John Kerry (U.S. Secretary of State)

## References

1. ↑ "Tickets". 31 March 2015. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
2. ↑ "Opening Ceremony of Rio 2016 Summer Olympics".
3. ↑ "Maracanã". *The Stadium Guide*.
4. ↑ "Rio Olympics organizers: Opening ceremony will be cheap". *CBC Sports*. 22 September 2015.
5. ↑ http://blogs.oglobo.globo.com/ancelmo/post/paulinho-da-viola-tocara-o-hino-nacional-na-abertura-da-rio-2016.html
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 "Foreign leaders slow to commit to Rio opening ceremony".
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 "Mais de 40 chefes de estado assistirão abertura da Olimpíada, diz Serra".
8. ↑ "Czech President confirms he will attend Opening Ceremony of Rio 2016". *Inside the Games*. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
9. ↑ http://orientpress.hu/cikk/2016-08-02\_ader-az-olimpia-nyito--orban-a-zarounnepsegen-kepviseli-hazankat
10. ↑ [1]
11. ↑ [2]
12. ↑ [3]
13. ↑ President Nikolic with Olympians until 8th August

Template:Olympic Games opening ceremonies
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