Tokyo Olympics kicks off with opening ceremony

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The 32nd Olympic Games formally began on Friday with a glittering opening ceremony. ‘United by Emotion’ was the theme of the night which opened with a countdown video dating back to the time when Tokyo won the bid to host the Games in 2013.

Japanese emperor Naruhito walked in with International Olympic Committee head Thomas Bach. The opening ceremony is being held at the Olympic Stadium where the track and field events will be held.

Boxing great M C Mary Kom and Indian hockey team skipper Manpreet Singh will be the flag-bearers at Japan National Stadium.

However, there were no spectators to witness the spectacle, which was watched by about a 1,000 dignitaries including US First Lady Jill Biden.

The ceremony sought to celebrate the athletes, who went through a whirlwind of emotion ever since the pandemic took away precious training time and left them grappling with the fear of the unknown.