Mary Kom, Manpreet Singh lead Indian contingent in Tokyo Olympics

The opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics began on Friday in a nearly empty stadium after a year-long pandemic postponement. The ceremony in the 68,000-capacity stadium took place before just a few hundred officials and dignitaries, including Japan's Emperor Naruhito, French President Emmanuel Macron and US First Lady Jill Biden.   India march in at No. 21, with boxer Mary Kom and men’s hockey captain Manpreet Singh as flag bearer. A total 205 contingents took part in the Parade of Nations.

Japan Emperor Naruhito declares the 32nd Olympic Games open after IOC president Thomas Bach's speech at the National Stadium. Japanese healthcare workers take the Olympic flag around the stadium while everybody stands up as the Olympic anthem is played in the background. Postponed by a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, organisers were forced to take the unprecedented step of holding the Games without fans as fresh cases of Covid-19 continue to rise in Tokyo and outside it. Bach began his remarks by telling those in the stadium, “Today is a moment of hope. Yes, it is very different from what all of us had imagined. But let us cherish this moment. Finally, we are all here together."Naomi Osaka lights the Olympic cauldron.