Pyeongchang Winter Olympics 2018 Opening Ceremony (Feb. 9) Preview: Start Time, TV Channel And Streaming Info

Some events of the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea began on Thursday night, but the opening ceremony will be held Friday evening, and here is everything you need to know about how to watch it.

Winter Olympics 2018 Opening Ceremony viewing info

For the first time ever, a U.S. audience will be able to stream the action live as it occurs. The opening ceremony will begin Friday at 8 p.m. EST and can be watched on NBC. It can also be live-streamed on NBCOlympics.com and the NBCSports app beginning at 6 a.m. EST. It will feature the Parade of Nations with world feed graphics and the event’s natural sound. Live streaming of all Olympic competition has occurred at every Games since London 2012.

NBC’s primetime Olympics host Mike Tirico and co-host Katie Couric anchor the ceremony for the XXIII Olympic Winter Games. The full presentation will include interviews and athlete profiles, (real-time fact cards and trivia about the athletes) as well as commentary from Joshua Cooper Ramo, Co-CEO of Kissinger Associates, who discussed culture and geo-political issues for NBC during the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Luger Erin Hamlin will be Team USA’s flag-bearer for the opening ceremony. Hamlin, a 31-year-old four-time Olympian, is the first female American luger to win a medal at any Winter Games: she won a singles bronze medal in Sochi, Russia in 2014.

Figure skating, freestyle skiing and mixed doubles curling were among the competitions that began Thursday.

SOCHI, RUSSIA – MARCH 16: The Russia and South Korea flags fly as a performer sings during the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games Closing Ceremony at Fisht Olympic Stadium on March 16, 2014 in Sochi, Russia. (Photo by Dennis Grombkowski/Getty Images)