Australians watching the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics were left scratching their heads because they mistakenly thought they had missed their country’s entry on Channel Nine’s coverage.
Competing nations sailed down the city’s River Seine in a radical change from ceremonies at previous Games, when countries were listed alphabetically by their French names, but Australians were baffled when coverage did not include the green and gold team at the start of proceedings.
When countries like the Bahamas and Bahrain were shown, viewers took to social media to express their confusion and anger because they thought their country had been left out of the action.
Some Australians thought they had missed the team’s entrance because the view had changed to a Lady Gaga performance, while others thought the athletes had been excluded entirely.
However, the Australians were absent from the first part of the coverage because the team is the third-last nation to arrive, due to Brisbane hosting the Games in 2032.
Olympic protocol dictates that future hosts always arrive near the end of the opening ceremony, with the host country arriving last, so this year, the last three nations to arrive will be Australia, followed by the United States (since Los Angeles will host in 2028), and then France.
“I’m watching the opening ceremony and Cambodia is floating down the river right now but I haven’t seen the Australian team. Where the hell are they? Or have I missed it?” wrote one viewer on X.
“Did I miss Australia? I fell asleep between barges and the next minute I saw a weird Gaga performance,” commented another.
Australian viewers took to social media as countries beginning with the letter B began sailing down the River Seine in Paris during the opening ceremony, leaving many thinking their country had been left out of television coverage.
Coverage was cut to show a performance by Lady Gaga (pictured) when many viewers thought they would see the Australian team making their arrival.
However, the Australian team (pictured before the ceremony) is the third team to reach the River Seine, as Brisbane will host the Games in 2032.
“I didn’t see Australia on the French Olympic opening ceremony broadcast and they’re on Bs (countries starting with B)… Did they skip Australia?” asked a third.
“What happened to Australia at the opening ceremony? I thought it was in French alphabetical order,” added another.
“Did I miss the #Australia ship or is that part of the entertainment?” another viewer asked.
However, some Australians have realised the reason for the delay.
“I was wondering if they missed Australia at the opening ceremony because of Lady Gaga. Turns out it’s because we’re future hosts,” one commenter wrote.
There were frequent breaks from the ships’ viewing to switch to musical and dance performances, as well as views of some of the City of Light’s famous landmarks, such as the Louvre and Notre Dame Cathedral, but none of this meant skipping countries.
However, the wet weather took some of the shine off the event.
France’s unique plan to hold the opening event outdoors rather than inside a stadium ran into problems as Parisians, celebrities, politicians and royals from around the world were forced to take shelter from the devastating rain.
The carefully choreographed outdoor parade began at 3:30am AEST, with a stunning performance by American superstar Lady Gaga, who wowed the crowd by performing a stunning Folie Bergiere entirely in French.
Pictured: Boats packed with athletes travel down the City of Lights’ famous river, with Australia nowhere to be seen until the final parts of the ceremony.
The wet weather somewhat dampened France’s unique take on the opening ceremony, but there were still plenty of spectacular images for viewers to enjoy.
France’s tricolour flag flew over the Austerlitz Bridge as 6,800 athletes covered in plastic ponchos tried to keep their spirits high as they travelled down the famous waterway in a huge flotilla of 85 boats.
Forecasters who predicted that unusually rainy July weather would be a “disaster” for the outdoor ceremony appear to have been right, as heavy rain drowned out the music for those watching from home.
Meanwhile, the screen at the Trocadero, where thousands of spectators gather, seemed to have been blacked out due to the bad weather.
Instead of crowds dressed in shorts and T-shirts enjoying the Parisian sunshine, the streets were lined with umbrellas and spectators, including celebrities, resorting to ponchos to protect themselves from the rain.
