I'll admit it. I'm a sucker for a great Olympic Opening Ceremony. Spoilers!

[suffragette]

Anyone else watching the opening ceremony?

I like how they are celebrating the many cultures and ethnicities in Brazil, while not sugarcoating.

[jberryhill]

1. For as screwy as the Olympics are...

The Opening Ceremony is a rare mass artistic event (outside of, say, North Korea).

I just wish the commentators wouldn't narrate as if it was a sporting event. The narration is always a buzzkill.

I want to see samba dancers chasing away enormous fanciful Aedes Aegypti mosquitos - that would be cool.

[suffragette]

2. I'm watching a Canadian channel

They're focusing on artistic and thematic meaning.

Your idea WOULD be very cool. It would fit in well, too!

[Takket]

4. SPOILER ALERT

spoiler alert.........

there are giant mechanical bugs

[Oneironaut]

32. "Look at that rain forest!" (As obvious rain forest forms)

I turned it off. Couldn't take it anymore.

[Warpy]

7. Yeah, the babblers always make me shut the sound off

I wish they'd get rid of the blow dried bafflegabbers just long enough to allow us to hear some of the music and pay attention to what's happening on the screen. They can bring them back for the nausea inducing "up close and personal" crapola.

I wonder if Olodum will be part of it. They might be able to drown the yammerers out.

[Takket]

3. i'm watching on CBC. they started at 7PM

not sure if this is live or not? Doesn't say it is live. They are one hour ahead of me (Eastern time zone here)

[malaise]

6. YEP - as usual NBC

is doing delayed - they disgust me

[Takket]

9. we always watch olympics on CBC

they just let the sports and artists speak for themselves, where NBC is constantly commentating and showing vignettes. Sometimes i feel like i haven't even seen any sports when i'm done!

[malaise]

11. Thankfully we use their feed

as well

[mahatmakanejeeves]

24. If I lived in North Dakota, as far north as, say, Minot,

I'd have a 10-meter dish, and I'd pick the signal off the CBC satellite.

[Warpy]

10. They have to delay it

Boston is due north of Santiago, Chile. Rio is far to the east and way ahead of eastern time. The opening ceremony would have been live while people were still at work.

The delay doesn't bother me. The assholes who gibber through the whole thing drive me insane.

[FrodosPet]

56. Matt Lauer is a national treasure

In a kinder, gentler world, they wouldn't have all that sports and ceremony stuff interfering with Matt Lauer talking.

C'mon, NBC! All day, All night, All Matt!

[suffragette]

8. Me, too :)

Not sure if it is live or not, but won't be on US network here until hours from now.

Besides, I prefer CBC coverage for the most part.

[roamer65]

17. CBC is way better.

They lower the volume of the announcers and let you hear more of the ceremony, unlike NBC where they drown it out and won't shut up.

[suffragette]

21. Yes, it's an entirely different experience.

And a much better one!

[maryellen99]

31. I just turned on CBC and they're already on the parade of nations

[malaise]

5. Yep

Same here

[suffragette]

13. Hey, sis!

[malaise]

15. Hi there

Here come the athletes

[suffragette]

18. Love how Aruba danced on in!

We need a samba smiley!

[malaise]

46. LOL

What a beautiful ceremony

[brer cat]

33. Where are the refugees?

Did they lead off with them or will they be placed somewhere in the midst of the nations?

[malaise]

47. Hope you saw them

almost at the end

[Takket]

12. uh oh, they are talknig about global warming

There goes the GOP audience.

[suffragette]

16. Multicultural start probably chased some away, then acknowledgement of global

Warming chased the rest.

[Takket]

20. artistry, global warming, acknowledgement of slave labor building the country

It is a GOP nightmare!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[suffragette]

25. I did not know Brazil had the largest Japanese community outside Japan.

Educational sports event - GOP hates that!

[Takket]

29. I said the same thing!!! I had no idea either.

[Motley13]

52. Brazil imported more slaves than anyone else

During the Atlantic slave trade era, Brazil imported more African slaves than any other country. An estimated 4.9 million slaves from Africa came to Brazil during the period from 1501 to 1866.[2] Until the early 1850s, most enslaved Africans who arrived on Brazilian shores were forced to embark at West Central African ports, especially in Luanda (present-day Angola). Today, with the exception of Nigeria, the largest population of people of African descent is in Brazil.[3]

[chillfactor]

14. I will not be watching.....

I prefer reading or watching a good mystery book or movie. I have always watched the opening ceremonies but Rio seems to be a disaster waiting to happen.

[suffragette]

19. I get that. There clearly are many problems.

I hope they can overcome as many of those possible.

[malaise]

48. because hosting international sports

is only the right of developed white countries.

[suffragette]

53. Yet, disasters have happened in those countries. Flame lighter is reminder of that.

But, those countries aren't bashed or removed from future consideration.

Look at what happened to Vanderlei Cordeiro de Lima in Athens.

He was attacked by a defrocked Irish priest during the marathon, an attack that may have cost him the gold.

https://m.

https://m.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A44124-2004Aug29.html?nav=rss_sports/leaguesandsports/olympics/2004summer

In Sunday's men's marathon, the last competition of the Summer Games, a Brazilian runner who led for more than 23 miles fell out of the lead shortly after being assaulted by a man in a black beret, red kilt and green knee socks. The assailant pushed him through a wall of befuddled fans onto a curb until he could be extricated and sent on his way again -- wobbly and dazed.

Within minutes, Italian Stefano Baldini and American Meb Keflezighi, who had been about 10 seconds behind, surged into the lead, setting the stage for Baldini to race to his first Olympic gold and Keflezighi to claim a stunning silver, the first Olympic medal won by an American man in the event in 28 years.

And then, there he came. As Keflezighi made the sign of the cross after running through the finish in 2 hours 11 minutes 29 seconds, 34 seconds behind Baldini, the battered Brazilian, Vanderlei de Lima, entered the 108-year-old marble Panathinaiko Stadium and sprinted joyously, exuberantly, to a bronze medal in 2:12:11.

"The Olympic spirit prevailed here," de Lima said. "My determination prevailed."


http://sportsworld.nbcsports.com/vanderlei-de-lima/
Neil Horan, a defrocked Irish priest who similarly trespassed onto the British Grand Prix Formula One course the year before, grabbed de Lima by his blue Brazilian singlet. He took the runner off the road and into a row of spectators in a few seconds.

~~~

De Lima emerged seven seconds after the collision to continue running, his lead cut into but not gone. He was obviously affected. De Lima once waved his arms in apparent exasperation after returning to the road.

“I think that the psychological shock was the greatest impact that I suffered,” de Lima said in Portuguese in the NBC Olympics profile. “To be attacked like that, it was painful. I was totally defenseless and exhausted.

“From that moment, it was a matter of overcoming the odds. I was even shaking my head like that guy messed everything up for me. But quitting the race didn’t once cross my mind.”

https://m.

[malaise]

54. Precisely

institutional racism is global sis.

[suffragette]

55. Exactly so.

I added a longer video of de Lima in the marathon after you posted your reply.

Well worth watching.

It's an amazing moment of triumph of spirit over hate and adversity.

Maybe, that's the true message in these games.

[a kennedy]

22. YES AND THEN THEY CUT TO COMMERCIALS........WHAT THE F*CK.

do they always have to have advertisements??? really??? can't they just do it without advertisements??? PLEASE??

[suffragette]

23. Always too many commercials

[BumRushDaShow]

27. Yes - screamed at the tv.

[jberryhill]

35. That's the point

[Oneironaut]

26. NBC needs to shut up and stop cutting off the ceremony.

Awful coverage

[suffragette]

30. I like the info from CBC

Fiji is a powerhouse in rugby!

[kydo]

28. Well it's way better then watching the don of the orange read from a peice of paper

that's probably why he is doing walk back and endorsing all the people the people he refused to do before, tonight nobody is watching, we are all watching the Olympics.

[suffragette]

38. His version of the Friday news dump, maybe?

[jberryhill]

34. Nice tribute to Brazilian Wax!

[a kennedy]

36. Oh my, now that is just wrong......ha ha ha. eom

[suffragette]

37. ???

[suffragette]

39. Samba time!

https://m.

[AgadorSparticus]

40. I love watching the Olympics too. And I am happy to see more cultural

Outfits. Seemed like the last Olympics was overrun with navy blue suits. Glad to see diversity in their outfits this time. Yea, I know. Pressing matters... lol

The U.S. team looks like a giant Ralph Lauren and I don't think that polo logo is big enough. I would even overlook the shoes if they would just chill on all the ads. Good grief...

[suffragette]

42. Walking Ralph Lauren ads. Show country identity through branding?

Yeah, I don't care for it.

I'd like to see them give other designers a shot at it. And lose the exaggerated branding.

[AgadorSparticus]

44. I agree. They need to give someone else a shot at this. It looks stagnant and lame

With the exaggerated branding to boot. Sick of it. Same basic look for 20 years. Ugh.

[a la izquierda]

41. One of the announcers called Brazil

"Cultural cannibals." What in the hell???

[suffragette]

43. WTF? Was that on NBC?

[a la izquierda]

45. Yep.

It was during the performance in the "favela." I almost died. My husband looked at me, waiting for my reaction (I have a PhD in Latin American history, so I was doubly appalled).

[suffragette]

50. That is vile. Looked for more info and she not only missed the meaning of the opening

ceremony, she distorted words and theme from the show's creators.

This goes deeper than misunderstanding.

That's a truly ugly statement.

https://www.romper.com/p/olympics-announcer-called-brazilians-cultural-cannibals-twitter-is-not-happy-15875

The comment came during a segment of the show in which the favelas of Brazil — its urban slums — were highlighted as the rich breeding ground for Brazilian culture, arts, music, and dance. The scene featured Brazilian street dancers breaking it down in a brightly colored, multi-level boxes, which reflect the way favela buildings appear stacked in Rio, thanks to the city's topography.

Vieira said in a voiceover:

"You know, the [show's] creator said something interesting about the people here, that they're cultural cannibals. They take the music from all over the world and they make it their own. Distinctly Brazilian."

Uh, what filmmaker Daniela Thomas actually said about the piece was:

"I've made many films that involve my living and going into favelas and talking to the people. I've never seen such creativity. It's really overwhelming. But the opportunity is the opposite. It's a combination of incredible creativity and very very little opportunity. And we pay homage to this creativity here, because the music that you will hear is all originated in the poorest districts, the poorest neighborhoods of Brazil."

[Adrahil]

49. I didn't see it, but I did see the clip...

where they continue to claim a Brazilian made the first successful airplane; a claim that has been debunked for DECADES.

[redstatebluegirl]

51. Me too!!! I love them, I watched last night on NBC.

Lots of commercials, but I enjoyed it!

[suffragette]

57. Beautiful ceremony! I posted some additional info about the flame lighter upthread.

Such an inspiration.

Not as many commercials on CBC.

Glad I watched opening ceremonies on there.

I will flip back and forth between CBC and NBC for the games, depending on what each is showing.