Paris Olympics opening ceremony under way

The opening ceremony for the Paris Olympics began on Friday, an unprecedented and ambitious show with up to 7,000 competitors parading down the River Seine past the historic monuments of the French capital.

For the first time in Olympic history, the opening ceremony is taking place outside the main stadium, with some 300,000 people watching in person from specially built stands, on the river banks, and another 200,000 from overlooking balconies and apartments.

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