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How to watch the Beijing Winter Olympics opening ceremony

How To Watch The Beijing Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony
Posted at 2:45 PM, Feb 02, 2022
and last updated 2023-02-25 17:33:02-05

Even though the Tokyo Summer Olympics closed less than six months ago, it’s already time for the next edition of the Games to begin.

While the COVID-19 pandemic pushed the 2020 Olympics back to 2021, the 2022 Winter Olympics are having no such delay and are set to officially begin on Feb. 4 with the pomp and circumstance of the opening ceremony.

This year’s Games will be hosted in Beijing, which was previously home to the 2008 Summer Olympics. If you remember anything from those Olympics — other than the dominant performances of Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt — it’s probably the opening ceremony.

The host city managed to raise the bar on what would be expected from all future opening ceremonies by using thousands of dancers and musicians in a larger-than-life performance that left the world awed. It makes you wonder if Beijing’s organizing committee will try to top itself this time around.

Kids perform at the Beijing Olympics 2008 opening ceremony.
AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Paul Chiasson

How To Watch The Opening Ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics

The opening ceremony will take place in Beijing on Feb. 4 but, due to the 13-hour time difference between America’s Eastern time zone and the host city’s time zone, things are a bit more complicated for the broadcasters.

As always, NBC Sports will air the Games across a variety of channels. In addition to airing prime-time coverage on NBC’s local broadcast affiliates, it will show full coverage of individual events across its family of cable channels (CNBC, USA, the Olympics Channel, Telemundo and Universo), online at NBCOlympics.com and on its streaming app, Peacock.

For the opening ceremony, however, your viewing options will be limited to NBC, Peacock or on NBCOlympics.com. Watching via either of the streaming options will require a paid subscription to either an existing live-TV service or a subscription to Peacock’s premium plan, which starts at $4.99 a month. Watching it on NBC, however, is totally free if you’re using an over-the-air TV antenna.

Mike Tirico broadcasts an NFL game on NBC Sports.
AP Photo/Jeff Haynes

On the day of the opening ceremony, you’ll be able to watch the event at two different times: live as it happens in Beijing or on tape-delay in prime time. If you choose to watch it live, the broadcast will start at 6:30 a.m. If you don’t mind watching it on a delay, you can catch the prime-time broadcast at 8 p.m. Eastern.

If you’re using an OTA antenna to watch the Beijing Winter Olympics, you’ll be limited only to the events shown on NBC but, luckily for you, that includes all the biggest ones. NBC’s prime-time coverage that airs each night during the Games will feature a roundup of each day’s top moments, as well as live coverage of some of the most popular sports.

For more information on selecting the right antenna and setting it up correctly, check out the free guides at our sister site, The Free TV Project.

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