The opening ceremony today (Friday night Brazil time) marks the beginning of the Olympic Games in Rio. NZ has 199 athletes competing in these games although not all of them have arrived yet. About half that number marched in the opening ceremony today. They were led by the two co-captains, both wearing a traditional Maori cloak called a kakahu. Peter Burling carried the flag and Blair Turk marched alongside him. They have both been world champion sailors four times and are respected by the other athletes.
The NZ athletes marching looked smart in their traditional black blazers. The women had blue and green scarves to add colour to the black.
Competition starts tonight (Saturday afternoon Brazil time) with rowing, men’s cycling and men’s gymnastics.
Vocabulary
• co-captains (n) – two equal captains
• traditional (adj) – the same things have been used for many generations
• respected (adj) – admired and honoured