Rio 2016 officially opens on Friday with the traditional Olympic Games opening ceremony which begins at 8pm (local time) and will be seen by three billion people around the world.
The legendary Maracanã Stadium will stage the opening and closing ceremonies. More than 35,000 professionals will be involved on the night with the show featuring 12 samba schools and over 5,500 costumes.
The battle for Olympic medals will take place in 32 venues in Rio de Janeiro, plus five football co-host cities: Belo
Horizonte, Brasília, Manaus, Salvador and São Paulo. The events in Rio will be divided into four zones, spread throughout the city of Rio de Janeiro: Barra, Deodoro, Copacabana and
Maracana. Most events will be held in the western part of Rio de Janeiro, in the
suburb of Barra da Tijuca. In Barra da Tijuca you will find the Rio de Janeiro
Olympic Park, with several venues, and the Olympic Village.
