it gets real in a hurry here in tokyo. the olympic flame is lit and the games get lit. a lot of things coming up, all that this weekend. what are you looking forward to? >> usa swimming. i've been wondering, can anybody catch katie ledecky? well, she's going to try. that's going to be real hot.

>> do you want to stay and host the olympics? you've got all the sports knowledge now. >> got some sports terminology now. >> sports, sports, sports, that's all you do. >> getting into it. >> and you will be here all next week as well. >> "today" show gang. >> everybody's coming over. this has been a blast. it really was a fun time and magical and historical night all in one. so we look forward to sharing the rest of the 17 days with all of you around the country. coming up next, as savannah mentioned, the rest of the "today" family joins a special edition of the "today" show. we'll catch up with team usa flag bearers sue bird and eddy alvarez, and tonight, dwayne "the rock" johnson, bonus coverage of team usa, primetime coverage of this opening ceremony again. with savannah guthrie, our entire nbc olympics team. welcome to tokyo. we'll be here for the next couple weeks.

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so loud we've lost our hearing, but i think you said great job,

savannah and mike. >> yes, we did. don't move, though, kids. we're going to come right back to you in a sec. >> we're going to get your thoughts on all we saw in just a moment. first, we want to check with you on this morning's start with an olympics like no other. tom llamas is also in tokyo for us. >> hey, guys, good morning. what a show. the world really didn't know if this moment would ever happen, but it did. it was big, it was beautiful. the drone show was unlike anything we've ever seen. the creative team connected ancient japan with the present day. and how about all those athletes? they were wearing masks when you could tell they were smiling so big and now they're ready to show their talents on the biggest stage in sports. against all odds, the opening ceremony of the tokyo games, giving did world a reason to look up. team usa celebrating their moment in the spotlight. the wait took longer than usual. five years to make it into the

stadium. leading the way, flag bearers sue bird, from the women's basketball team, going for her fifth gold medal and u.s. baseball's eddy alvarez, the ultimate olympian. he also won a silver medal in the winter games for speed skating. the ceremony also including scenes from ancient japan, celebrating the artisans that built this country with their bare hands. on this night, yielding the olympic rings. the showstopper -- >> those are 1800 drones. >> the moment nearly 2,000 drones took to the air forming a globe rotating through the sky. the stadium, though, mostly empty because of covid protocols. with about a thousand government officials and foreign diplomates witnessed the event up close, including first lady jill biden. team usa decked out in ralph lauren from head to toe, even the masks were custom made.

the athletes who couldn't be in the stadium rallying behind their team. >> it's a special time. playing with your brothers, it's an amazing feeling and we're looking forward to taking care of business. >> simone biles and the superstar gymnastics squad posting on instagram let the games begin. >> and we do want to mention there was a small group of protesters outside the olympic stadium, but there were no disruptions to the program. one more note about the opening ceremony, we do want to mention, we showed you this great moment earlier of those wooden olympic rings. back in 1964 when tokyo last hosted the games, some international athletes brought seeds from their home countries. those seeds grew into trees. the wood from those trees was used to build those rings, a 57-year project. a great way to unite countries and generations of olympians. guys, back to you. >> that's pretty cool. >> talk about playing the long game. >> no kidding. >> all right, guys, we have to bring them in the dynamic duo

guided us through the remarkable -- you guys, savannah, mike tirico, we have to say, you guys were on point. it was riveting. and, look, we weren't able to be in the stadium. actually, barely anyone was. you guys had front row seats to the athletes. give us a sense of what it felt like without the crowd but with all the excitement. >> you know what? i thought it was so moving and so beautiful. and somehow they pulled it off. i mean, you know, this is obviously an extraordinary circumstance. unlike any other games. but somehow they got the tone right where it was serious, it was somber, there were moments of humor, however. you got the joy and the emphasis was on the athletes. >> you know, the theme was united by emotion. and that was supposed to be the theme back in 2019 when they were playing for 2020. so they had to significantly pivot and i thought they picked the right things to pivot. they tried to go back and forth.

not that two too celebratory, too happy, yet at the same time do understand that the athletes are here to enjoy themselves. that's what hit me. when the athletes came out, that added the answer to the unknown that i think we had preparing for this. what was it going to be like in here? they brought the juice and i think that changed the whole tenor of the evening. >> they brought the joy. >> guys, watching on tv, when those drones went up, it was pretty amazing on television. what was it like being there and looking up and seeing that going on? >> i'm telling you, this was jaw dropping. we were lucky enough to see this in rehearsal, actually, a couple of times. and every time i got chills. i couldn't believe it. the first time we saw it, we didn't know what it was. then they said, oh, that's 1824 separate drones that then, you know, changed position and, actually, i have a little surprise here, you guys, for mike tirico. i got one of the drones. >> oh, wow. >> this is one of the intel drones. there were 1800 of these.

>> fabulous. >> isn't this cool? >> that's really good. >> that flew in formation. which is -- i don't think it's ever been pulled off before. i mean, i just can't even imagine. >> they did one little event in pyeongchang at the opening ceremony with some drones, but nothing like this and nothing like what they formed, forming the globe and the countries. that was amazing. and you asked what it was like, al, to be here. honestly, i took off my headset and started taking pictures. we weren't going to talk over imagine. imagine was so you beautiful. so i just snapped a bunch of pictures. >> it was beautiful. >> and go and the athletes were gazing up and they all had their cameras out. it was a pretty unique moment. >> the drones, the flyover, the fireworks, so many moments. what about when naomi osaka lit that cauldron at the end. there were so many questions about with who would actually light it and then to see her and all of us, we were like, oh, yeah, that makes sense.

>> it was thrilling, especially after the year that she's had. but for her to triumphantly be there and walk those steps, that was a moment for her, for this country, for the year that everyone has been through and what everyone has had to overcome. i think she really symbolized that and it's just incredible. and for her to be playing here in tokyo after missing the summer of tennis, you know, in a way, who else could it be? i hoped it would be her. >> sure, you did, as a tennis fan of course. of course. >> we were droefg over here and we were looking at the tennis schedule for tomorrow because somebody here is working. somebody wants to go to an event. figure out which one is which. but we thought naomi osaka was playing on the tennis program tomorrow and i couldn't find her name. well, they moved her match back a day so she could light the cauldron. >> you said it's very rare to have an athlete in the current

games light the cauldron for obvious reasons. >> absolutely. cathy freeman, 2000 in australia famously lit the cauldron. it has not happened very often. but the right person at the right time. naomi osaka has spoken up for something i think athletes were afraid to do and that's how i'm feeling whether it's their mental health, they are concerns about what's going on in society, she has used her voice as a platform as a four-time major champ and now she gets to light the cauldron. >> we can't wait to see you out there. we're going to head there on saturday. we'll see you soon, okay? >> can't wait. >> see you guys. >> thank you, guys. >> and by the way, if you missed any of the excitement over the last few hours or if you want to relive it all again, you can watch the opening ceremony tonight in prime time starting at 7:30 eastern right here on nbc. coming up, guys, we will talk with a guy who is still

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second largest olympic team in u.s. history. no nation has won more medals at the summer olympics than the united states of america entering now. >> usa, we're back with this morning's special moment there for the athletes who had the honor of being the flag bearers for team usa. basketball legend and four-time medalist sue bird, of course, and is speed skating silver medalist now turned baseball player eddy alvarez. oh, he's off the bus. >> you guys are a little late. i'm about to get to the checkpoint here. as you can tell, the security is extremely high here. and let me just go ahead and say that. eddy alvarez correspondent coming to you from the field. >> yeah. yeah. >> eddy, what did it feel like to lead team usa into the stadium holding the flag? >> oh, guys, i mean, such an emotional moment for me, for my family, from my background, just to get the honor to represent

the united states of america, to hold the flag, the symbol of liberty and freedom. you know, my family came over to this country from cuba in search of opportunity. and if it wasn't for them doing that, i wouldn't be in the position that i am now, the privilege that i have, that i had to hold the flag and lead team usa to the opening ceremony. this has been such a whirlwind of emotions. >> eddy, we so wish we could meet your mom, dad, your wife and your 11-month old. why don't we bring them on the air. we have mable and walter alvarez, eddy's wife, abby, 11-month-old jed. >> oh, my. >> i'm not sure who was crying more during opening, you or that group on the side. >> oh, my gosh. oh, guys, you just made my night. this is incredible. >> gabby, tell us what it felt

like watching your man. >> oh, my god, i'm not crying, you're crying. it was such an emotional, incredible feeling. i'm so proud of you. i mean, everything you represent, you really -- i mean, you've made all of us so proud. >> and mable and walter, watching your son lead team usa, must have been a proud moment. tell us what it felt like. >> oh, my god. there's no words to express the feeling. i thought i was going to be strong, but i lost it. i lost it because eddy, you truly make us proud, baby. like always. god bless you. >> i love you, mom. >> say hi, dad. >> seeing all the americans already gave me chills and now seeing eddy in front of all the u.s. team, knocked me out -- you know, knocked me out of my socks.

i can't be any more proud, i cannot be any happier, i cannot be more grateful to everything. mainly to this country. >> eddy, just -- it's clear why you are where you are. we can see exactly why. we want to wish you the best of luck in tokyo. go eddy. we'll be there cheering you on, okay, honey? >> i thank you so much for this. you have no idea. >> love you. >> pretty -- guys. love pup. >> thank you. >> bye, ed. >> that's why we love the olympics. olympics. oat's why we love the

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good friday morning. meteorologist kari hall. seeing less fog in san francisco. that's going to decrease wind we see with the natural air conditioning. even though it is mild, the coasts and inland valleys are hotter today, reaching into the mid 90s for concord, livermore, san jose coming up a couple more degrees. as we head to the north bay,

mid-80s in the forecast today, a little hotter tomorrow. are you packed? is everybody packed? >> yeah, ready. >> we're getting ready to head out there. before we do, we have much more ahead on this special edition of "today," including your favorite event. >> gymnastics, of course. we have nastia liukin in the house. plus, things are going to get plus, things are going to get pretty rowdy around here. verizon launched the first 5g network and now we want to be the first to give everyone the joy of 5g, by giving every customer a new 5g phone. old customers. new customers. families. businesses. every customer. from these bakers to these bakers. hello! new 5g phones when you trade in your old ones. cracked, busted, sticky buttons and all thank you. upgrade your phone. upgrade your network. (laughter)

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good morning to you. 8:26. i am laura garcia. here's a look at what's happening now. >> reporter: i am bob redell. two members of congress introduced legislation in washington, d.c. that will not only study health impact of wildfire smoke which we could see later today, but try to come up with ways to mitigate effects of the smoke. yesterday, the representatives from palo alto and mike thompson introduced the smoke planning and research act, which would give the epa, environmental protection agency, $20 million to study the issue and come up

with solutions. i am kris sanchez. team usa, fewer than a thousand dignitaries, sharing experiences by social media, including katie ledecky, simone man well. two san francisco giants marched in opening ceremony with the u.s. baseball team. simone biles posted a fantastic jump for joy. remember, see all of the action here on nbc bay area. check the forecast in the bay area with meteorologist kari hall. >> still looking at a wide range of temperatures. slightly warmer inland valleys, reaching into the mid 90s for today, some of the hottest spots. it will be cooler by end of the weekend, we will heat up by middle of next week. san francisco seeing less fog and sunshine continues here, highs in the upper 60s. some fog during the morning

hours, expect more sunshine the next few days. >> love it. thanks so much. thank you for joining us. back with another local update in a half hour. hope to see you then. have a great morning.

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we are back at 11:30 eastern on this friday morning. here in the united states, it is 12:30 in the morning on saturday there in tokyo. the olympic cauldron shining bright after the opening ceremony of the olympics wrapped up less than just a half hour ago. >> watching naomi osaka like that cauldron was something to say. if you missed the opening ceremonies, they're going to run it again tonight. >> one group we're going to be watching really closely, the gymnasts.

>> we are, indeed. competition kicks off tomorrow morning, tokyo time, which means you can begin to get your gymnastics fix tonight. so in a moment, we will preview things with a woman who knows what it takes to win gold. we're talking about miss nastia liukin. but first, a little bit more about the men and women of team usa. >> the final preparations leading up to a moment these women have worked for all their lives. 364 days after the original tokyo olympics were slated to begin, the six women who make up the u.s. olympics gymnastics team are ready to shine. >> she is just so much better than everybody else. >> helping lead the powerhouse team, the greatest of all time, simone biles. the defending all-around champion is back for her second games. she is ready to break gold and records along the way. >> going into rio, i was kind of a kid. i didn't really know too too much. but now i'm an adult, i know who

i am and i know what my gymnastics brings. >> with biles, there's chiels. >> i'm so proud of you. >> jordan chiles, that is. simone's close friend and training teammate now by her side at the olympics ready to hit every routine like she's done this past year. >> buckle up. this is wild. >> sunisa lee has put everyone on notice with her skills on the uneven bars and is even a contender for gold in the event. mykala skinner, an alternate in 2016, now officially part of the team and ready to represent after getting covid and being hospitalized earlier this year. and rounding out the sensational six, rising stars grace mccallum and jade carey. both carey and biles could get new skills named after them during the games. >> wow. >> and it all starts this weekend with the men's team taking center stage saturday for their qualifying competition.

then it's the women's turn on sunday. tuesday with the team final where the women are heavily favored to win for the third consecutive time. from there, it's the all around and individual events. >> spectacular. >> simone is expected to become the oldest american woman to win all-around gold and first to repeat as all-around champion in more than 50 years. >> big release right here. >> on the men's side, all eyes are on the high bar where three-time olympian sam mccullik and brody malone have a chance at the podium. gone from these games, the gymnasts family and friends cheering in the stands. the arena in tokyo void of any fans as a covid precaution. >> how are you guys going to, like, make sure that you're straight when it comes time for competition? i would imagine, simone, that the group is going to rely on each other more than before.

>> of course. and we'll have so much repetitions. and i remember in rio, it was like you did so many, you almost can't mess up at that point. so i'm not worried. once we get over there, we're set. >> the pandemic already lead to go a scare for the team with the alternate kar a eaker testing positive earlier this week. >> that was super sad news. but, anyway, at least all of us six are good. >> the team opt to go stay at a hotel rather than the olympic village. each gymnast now in their own rooms, but the team is still managing to soak in every second. simone interacting with fans on instagram during her downtime. having fun, but staying focused, ready to get the job done. >> and as for simone, we know she's the greatest of all time and now she has an emoji to prove it. check this out. twitter is honoring her, making simone the first olympian to receive a custom emoji.

you can see the goat with a leotard and it will appear when the user using #simone or #simonebiles. joining us now, olympics analyst nastia liukin. i know you're keeping your eye on the girls and guys of the u.s. gymnastics team. i know you were watching the practice and it sounds to me like there's confidence that is going on 37. >> yeah, there is a lot 06 confidence. they had their podium training which means they go out into the competition arena and it's the only time that they get to train where they will compete. and she did the vault. so we're all kind of crossing our fingers that it's going to go into one of the competitions. so when i spoke to her coach earlier in the week, they basically said that they didn't think that they would be doing it night one of competition, so the qualifying round, but we're hoping to see it probably in the all-around finals or vault finals. >> nastia, the team usa females,

a lot of pressure for them to bring home gold, but let's stick with simone. five years ago in rio, she brought home foel four golds, a bronze, a lot of people expecting her to leave tokyo with five gold medal these year. is that possible, probable or inevitable? >> i mean, it's kind of bound to happen. you know, thinking back to ree rio where she won four gold medals where she was incredible and the best in the world, took more than a year off, comes back and obviously the olympics being delayed for an entire year, she is better now than she has ever been in her entire career. that's really, really hard to do. gymnastics is one of those sports where the older you get, it gets even more challenging and more difficult. and so she could have won the olympics here in tokyo with the same routines and the same skills that she actually competed at in rio. but that wasn't enough for her, you know? it's really trying to be better than she has personally ever

been. she's competing against herself. it's so admiringble to be able to watch her continue upping the game. >> nastia, the qualifying rounds this weekend, what are you watching for? folks who are at home, what should we be watching for? >> you know, i think the most challenging part, actually, is how good team usa is because in the qualifying round, the top two per country will only advance to the all around finals, the event finals and obviously you're qualifying to the team finals. but, you know, in my opinion, i think there's going to be at least three if not four in the top eight on each event and then, you believe, the all-around finals. what we always say is you can't win a gold medal in the qualifying round, but you can obviously lose one by not making it to the finals. so, obviously, just trying to do their best and, really, i think for them, as well, is just trying to come out on to that competition floor. it's been a year that nobody

ever thought, you know, we would experience. and so for them to be able to really achieve their dreams of finally becoming olympians is going to be really exciting for them. >> nastia, who is the biggest competition? who will we be watching to be competing really against our team? >> yeah, well, on the women's side, it's definitely going to be russia and china. watching them in training yez, you know, they were strong. they had the skills. they had the consistency. but something that the other countries sometimes lack is the consistency when the pressure is on. and that's what team usa does so well. you know, it's three athletes up on each event. all three scores have to count in the team finals and every single olympics in at least the last few cycles it's really been something that they excel is. they go out there and they hit every single time. >> nastia, one of the things the girls all said to me during the interview was we want to have fun. and you actually felt it.

it wasn't like let's have fun. they really have that vibe. you've actually had a chance to talk with them over there. this is after one of their teammates tested positive for covid, one of the alternates. but, like, where is their head space right now? >> yeah. i got a chance to talk to simone yesterday and the day before. and i think you're exactly right, hoda. i think especially because of the year that everybody has had, they really just want to go out there and compete. and, you know, simone has been to an olympic games, so she kind of knows what it's like. but as she said, it's different every single time you go out there. but for the other women, they are about to embark on the most memorable experience of their entire lives. yes, a different experience than possibly some of us have ever experienced, but i know just watching them, they are ready. they're physically ready. they're mentally ready. they're prepared and now it's time to go win some gold medals for them. >> it is. >> it's show time. >> i love how simone and mykala

skinner call themselves the o.g., the old grandmas. nastia, we look forward to watching. >> thank you. see you soon. >> they're ready, we're ready. up next, we're going to turn from the mat to the pool, the from the mat to the pool, the great rowdy gains getting us up here, success depends on the choices you make. from the mat to the pool, the great rowdy gains getting us but i know i've got this. and when it comes to controlling his type 2 diabetes, my dad's got this, too. with the right choices, you have it in you to control your a1c and once-weekly trulicity may help. most people taking trulicity reached an a1c under 7%. and it starts lowering blood sugar from the first dose, by helping your body release the insulin it's already making. trulicity is for type 2 diabetes. it isn't for people with type 1 diabetes. it's not approved for use in children. don't take trulicity if you're allergic to it, you or your family have medullary thyroid cancer, or have multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2. stop trulicity and call your doctor right away if you have an allergic reaction, a lump or swelling in your neck, severe stomach pain, changes in vision, or diabetic retinopathy. serious side effects may include pancreatitis.

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>> japan will be represented by 631 athletes including ruha shimora. >> the athletes. >> we are back on this special edition of "today" with some more of those memorable moments from that parade of athletes. >> do you think they gave thonga enough airtime? >> they used all of the oil -- >> actually, that's wd-40. >> so when it comes to swimming, this is the first time in years team usa will be without michael phelps. but there's a lot of swimmers ready to step up in his absence. >> here to tell us all about them is rowdy gaines. we know we don't have michael

phelps, and that's a super bummer, but we have caeleb dressel. do you think caeleb can fill those shoes? >> it is a shock to the system when we have the g.o.a.t. retire from the sport, even though he will be with us in the booth coming up. but caeleb dressel is one of those rare talents that comes along in a generation. if anybody can fill those shoes, it will be caeleb. he has the versatility, an incredible array, but he's much more of a sprinter. he will be in the 50 free, the 100 free, and the 100 fly. he broke michael's world record a couple of years ago. so it will be an exciting time to watch him swim. he could swim at least six events, maybe seven, and that's a lot of medals to haul in. >> i got to spend some time with caeleb a few weeks ago, and he does not like the comparison to

michael phelps, but it's hard not to do that when he's in the water. let's talk about katie ledecky. what should we expect from her this time around? >> craig, if she doesn't take another stroke, she's still the greatest of all time on the female side. nobody is even close. think about this, she hasn't lost the 800 freestyle in almost ten years. she has the top 20 times in history. it's unbelievable what she's been able to accomplish. her body of work speaks for itself. she's going to be swimming a lot of events, including the 1500, the first time that's ever been contested for the women. so it's going to be a very exciting night about midway through the meet. she has the 200 freestyle and about an hour later she has the 1500 freestyle final. so it's going to be a fascinating night to see what -- in track and field terms, think about this. it's sort of like run the 800 and then aen hour later running the 10,000.

>> that is crazy. so you talk about the 800 freestyle and her dominance. folks say she has one of the most efficient strokes going out there. for those of us who aren't swimmers, what does that mean? what edge does that give you? >> al, you know, i think one of the great things about katie is she is always relished the challenge. you know what i mean? she just loves to be able to get there and challenge herself each and every day. nobody really has been close to her for so long, especially in that marquis event, the 800 freestyle. she literally has swum that by herself for almost ten years. so she has to do it in practice. look at that right there. she's a body length ahead of the world record line and about two body lengths ahead of everybody else. so this is the way that she has been able to really force herself to reach that highest level. she's going to have a challenge. the second morning here, night, back home, she's going to have that challenge against arianna

titmus from australia. that will be a great race in the 400 freestyle. but i don't think she will be challenged in the 800 and 1500. >> i love your passion for kim swimming. it's great to hear you talk all day long. >> talk to us about the medley event. how does it event work and what is the strategy? >> dude, it's my favorite race. it's the one i'm looking forward to the most. especially from a team concept. you have six other relays, but this will be the one that is the most exciting. literally, you could have two women, for example, lead off and build a great lead for a specific team. and then all of a sudden, you've got all these minutes start to go chase that time down and that marker down. so the lead could change hands so many different times with all four different legs. that's what makes this fascinating.

plus it's two pollen and two women. it's a great chance and opportunity for these teams to come together with both sexes. >> rowdy, i love that you called carson dude. that's the best. hey, i've got a question, though. you have a lot of young kids on the women's swim team. we did a whole piece on how many teenagers there are on the team. how does that affect it? >> there are 11 teenagers, hoda. it's a young team. it really is. that's why the veterans really have to come through. that's katie grimes. she's 15 years old, the youngest on the team. they really have to come together. and i saw that. i was in hawaii a couple weeks ago when my partner, dan hicks and i, both went down there. and i saw those veterans really bring those youngsters together and the team really mesh. in fact, i got a text from greg meehan, the coach earlier and he said they had a team meeting last night and it was the best they had thus far and it couldn't happen with better timing because it all starts tomorrow. we're going to give nastia and

her group a run for their money. >> a little smack talk from rowdy. 11 teenagers. >> she's standing right over there. i'm going to -- we're coming at you. >> nastia, don't you take that. >> rowdy gaines, like rowdy rowdy -- >> oh, yeah. >> thank you, rowdy. >> bring it on, she says. >> thank you, thank you. again, the first swimmers hit the pool tomorrow with heats in the men's and women's 400 meter individual medley. the women's 4x100 meter relay and more. and you can catch all of the action across the networks of every one of us is connected. everyone. everywhere. where everyone is included. where everyone has access to information, education, opportunity.

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next week. looking quiet here and air quality turning moderate. hey, guys, we're only halfway through this special edition of "today." >> that's right. still ahead we're going to take you behind the scenes of the olympic experience for the athletes and the folks covering the games this time around. >> plus, we're going to go one-on-one with the u.s. skateboarder who could become one of tokyo's biggest stars when his sport makes its olympics debut. plus, we have tony hawk joining us live from tokyo. skateboarding and a whole lot more. but first, these quick messages.

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good friday morning. 8:56. i am laura garcia. here's what's happening now. >> the opening ceremony reminds us all that brings us together as opposed to what tears us apart. one of the top olympians has love for the hometown danville. danville is a blessing for me. all of the of course experiences i have there, the friendships,

everything kind of blossomed there, allowed me to go for my dreams. >> maggie in the pool opening up against japan. and simone biles on the mat today. team usa gymnastics opens up competition tomorrow. we are off and running in tokyo. see you later today for a 9:00 p.m. newscast. from tokyo, raj mathai. >> he introduces us to bay area athletes as part of a special. let's look at the forecast with meteorologist kari hall. >> we have coastal temperatures and warm valleys. hotter in east bay valleys. napa reaching 95. 85 rather. a high of 83 in san jose. and palo alto, looking at high of 80 degrees. slightly cooler going into the rest of the weekend with a lot of sunshine. heating up by middle of next

week. >> thanks so much. thank you for joining us as well. another local update here in an hour.

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it is 12:00 on this special edition of "today." coming up, let the games begin. the opening ceremony kick off paying tribute to japan's cultural history. events you won't want to miss. >> we've never had anything like this. >> behind the scenes, what life is like in tokyo during the games. >> the highlight of my day is waking up in the morning and

coming out on this balcony. just check out the view. >> so join us as the olympic spirit is being felt throughout the world today, friday, july 23rd, 2021. >> go team usa! >> we love team usa. >> usa! usa! >> supporting our olympians. >> from almost 7,000 miles away in new york city. >> we can't wait to watch team usa in tokyo. >> go team usa! >> we're staying up all night to watch the tokyo olympics. >> we're rooting for team usa to go for gold. >> rooting for all the athletes from boston. >> we can't wait to see all our athletes in the olympics games. >> go team usa. >> keep sending those in. >> raise your hand if you're pumped up for the olympics. it is happening. welcome back. we have a special edition. by the way wiebts friday, y'all, and it's noon and we're auto tv. >> i think we should do this more often. >> by the way, savannah is getting some much deserved rest

in tokyo after she and mike tirico guided us through that opening ceremony. >> it was beautiful. it was inspirational. they didn't have the usual spectators, friends and families in the stands, but somehow it was incredible to watch. >> it really was. also watching at nbc, sam brock is in tokyo with more on the opening ceremony. how amazing was that, sam? >> spectacular. good morning, guys. it's 1:00 here. good afternoon for you. for the first time in nearly 60 years, there was an olympic opening ceremony in tokyo. the last one was 1964. this time in a newly rebuilt stadium that could house 68,000 people but only a portion of it was actually filled with dignitaries and athletes, so it was the culture that took precedent, not the size of the crowd.

at olympic stadium, notes of harmony transcending language capped by an emotional torch bearing ceremony that saw japanese baseball legends hand off to children from areas devastated by the 2011 earthquake and the cauldron ultimately lit by a local hero and tennis star naomi osaka still united a covid-conscious world. team usa projecting a nation's optimism. for the first time in olympic history, the delegations featuring two flag bearers each with the united states nominating baseball player eddy alvarez and four-time olympic gold medalist guard sue bird. eddy and his family speaking with "today" in an emotional exchange right after the ceremony. >> such an emotional moment for me, for my family, for my background, you know, just to get the honor to represent the united states of america. >> why don't we go ahead and bring them on the air.

we've got mable and walter alvarez. eddy's wife, gabby, 11-month-old jet. i mean, hey -- eddy, i'm not sure who was crying more during opening, you or that group on the side. >> i cannot be any more proud, i cannot be any more happier. >> the night highlighted many facets of this culture from kabuki to the pictogram performance, first used in 1964 to overcome language barriers. despite some protesters outside the stadium, tokyo looking to unite this global audience with over 1800 drones shaped like a globe. the superstars who couldn't be in the stadium experiencing the events through their eyes. many of the athletes moving past the covid concerns that have dogged the games. since the beginning of july, tokyo's organizing committee has

reported 110 faces connected to those involved out of tens of thousands of tests with 11 of them athletes. still, the overall positivity rate is below 0.1%. inside the stadium, the energy among america's elite athletes, electric. the world today, one big melting pot united by a common cause of completing the games in historic fashion. and tokyo bid for the 2020 games in the aftermath of the devastating 2011 earthquake and tsunami and flowers from fukushima and several other prefectures will be in the victory bouquets handed out to the athletes. here we are, a decade later in the midst of another catastrophe, but organizers say this will be a chance to show the connecter and healing power of sports. >> yes, it will. and a reminder, you can watch the opening ceremony in its entirety tonight at 7:30 eastern now on nbc.

>> now we say is one of team usa's athletes who participated in that opening ceremony. her name is abby gositis. she's cocaptain of the women's rugby sevens team. it's hoda here. i was going to start this interview with you, but a birdie told me you are a big fan of the trl back in the day. >> let's go, abby. >> north ar vard high school stud. wait a second, abby. you played basketball. did you play for lynn james? >> i did play for lynn james. wow. incredible. >> how did you get -- so you're a terp. you didn't even get into rugby until you went to college in maryland. is that right? >> correct. i started playing in 2010. i just walked on to the rugby team, thought it seemed like a good time after playing basketball for my entire life. >> and you watch trl. >> we want to hear. >> you were ten years old and watching videos. that's table. >> trl, that was the highlight

of my day. i'm running home from school, up my driveway, turning on mtv to say carson on there. >> mine was the only building to have electricity. >> we did have electricity. >> i love that she's an olympic athlete and the thing that made her nervous was talking to carson daly. we hate to see you were eavesdropping when you were getting miked up. tell us about the team. you're cocaptain of this rugby team. we're so excited for you. what do you think your chances are of winning gold? >> we're super excited. it's a group of 12 incredible women from all over the country, super diverse group of gals and i'm honored to lead them. we got our eyes on that gold medal and we want to leave tokyo with a medal around our neck. >> do you find that people are still trying to figure out rugby? my fiancee plays rugby and he's

always explaining it to everybody. do you feel like it's catching on? >> it's definitely catching on. i think it can be a huge hit in american. it's a 14-minute game. it's absolutely hectic. it's full tackle, women's and men's rules are the complete same, which is incredible. and i think as long as we can get people watching it, we'll get america right behind this team. >> abby, what is it about rugby that you love? what is it about rugby that makes you excited? >> the camaraderie is what's kept me around rugby for over a decade. it's the most welcoming group of people. the respect and discipline that is shown in the sport and taught to you is everlasting. but the physicality and the finesse for me is what keeps me coming back. it's absolutely exhausting. for more. >> we so appreciate you staying up late. opening ceremony that just

wrapped up a short time ago? it was magical on tv. i can only imagine what it was like to experience it firslleme walking next to the american i have goose bumps just thinking about it. but seeing everyone there, they put on a great show with the drones and seeing the globe and playing the song "imagine" was just gives me the feels and absolutely chilling. >> abby, we want to say thank you, but we figure you don't care about us, you just care about carson. >> well, no, listen. were you team nsync or team backstreet boyz? >> insnyc. come on, j.t. >> the girls were fifth place in rio. we're pulling for the gold this year in tokyo. abby, when you get it, we want you to come down here.

i'd love to meet you in person on the plaza. we'll recreate a trl moment and give you a big hug. >> way to go, abby. >> go get them. >> he just picked up a whole slew of new fans. >> how cool is that? >> i love it. so proud of her. >> you just made a rugby player blush on trish. >> she's incredible. bye, abby. >> thank you so much. >> thank you. up next, we've goot a sport making its olympic debut. cannot wait for this. skateboarding. tom llamas catching up with the star of team usa who is a favorite for gold. favorite for gold. plus, we have the sport's after my dvt blood clot... i was uncertain... was another around the corner? or could things take a different turn? i wanted to help protect myself. my doctor recommended eliquis. eliquis is proven to treat and help prevent another dvt or pe blood clot. almost 98 percent of patients on eliquis

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so... when's the party? i love fondue. really? i never joke about hot cheese, susan. me neither. capital one shopping. it's kinda genius. what's in your wallet? we're back, guys, with more of this special edition of "today" after this morning's but this summer, some new sports are making their debut. >> among them, skateboarding. remember this game because you're going to be hearing it a lot. team usa's nija houston. >> that's right. and tom llamas had a chance to

talk to him. nyjah huston is the best. he's the big ft in the sport right now. and after talking to him, he's well aware of the magnitude of this moment. nyjah huston has been ramping up for this moment. a skating superstar known for taking on anything in his path. >> fakey. oh! >> now ready to compete on the biggest stage of them all, the olympics. >> talk to me about where your mind is at right now. >> excited. very excited. a lot of nerves, obviously. way bigger than any skate contest i've ever skated before. i'm stoked for this opportunity. >> huston is part of the first ever u.s. olympic skateboarding

team. >> it's amazing. it's a special time for skateboarding in general. i'm thankful i'm still at a good point in any career to make the team first and to have a good chance of going out there and getting a gold. >> huston started skating as a kid and quickly found his footing.siature style and gravi defying i won the biggest amateur contest when i was 10 years old and by the time i was 11 i was skating xgames. >> but even with the early success and fame, huston remained fueled by his love of the sport. >> every time i would go skate, i would work on landing new tricks. there's a special feeling when you try something for hours and you finally love it. >> that passion for skating is real. look no further than the 26-year-old's instagram. with more than 4 million followers watching the superstar hone his skills on rails, sidewalks, in his home, and out

at skate parks. huston giving his fans a behind the scenes look at his drive to be the best. >> i have just always had a lot of did he tell dedication for the craft on going out there and putting the hours in, putting the work in to get it done. >> huston has won 13 x-games gold medals and he's a 16-time more prize money than any other skater. at the tokyo olympic, park and street. huston is skating street where ery rail, jump and slope. of >> it's a high chance you can injure yourself every time you're on the board because it's so technical. >> now huston hopes hard work and work pays off. >> what can america expect from you? >> they can expect me to go out there and give it my absolute all because i am really proud to

be representing team usa. >> nyjah tells me he is going for gold. skateboarding kicks off on saturday. we will be rooting on nyjah and the entire usa skateboarding team. nyjah ask is probably the most famous skateboarder on the planet next to this guy right here, tony hawk. i actually had to take a picture with him because i was such a fan growing up. this guy is one of my heros. so nice to be next to him here in tokyo. >> yeah. >> tony, let's jump right in, man. congratulations. a couple of weeks ago, you were competing out of the xgames and so here you are now. what a get for us here at nbc to have you commentating on skateboarding this weekend. tell everybody -- i can't even imagine what it must be like for the sport and for you personally to have skateboarding in the olympics. >> it's very exciting opportunity. it's been a long time coming. i think that there was interest in skateboarding in the olympics early on and the skate industry

wasn't organized enough, didn't meet all the criteria to actually qualify. and now here we are and it's great, especially with surfing and sport climbing. i feel like there's a youthful energy here. >> walk us through how this sport this thing. walk us through a little bit of the rules. >> well, difficulty factors is a big part of it. consistency, obviously, if you're going to be making your tricks, especially in the routines. a fall can -- i mean, that can end your whole run right there. what you want to see is people doing the bigger stuff, the bigger stair ts, bheigger handrails, doing the aerials. going further, going faster. it's sort of an overall impression. it's something the judges have to know, precise skaltboarding and be living in it to understand. >> tony, you've done this 900 degree flip i think it's like 2 1/2 times. you're a park competitor. is that what we're going to be

looking at mostly, these big kind of flips and things or are there other criteria that's taking part? >> well, this is -- the park discipline is the closest thing to what you're seeing now, which is called the vert ramp. the vert ramps are 13 feet tall and nothing in the park event is not that high. so you're not going to see that type of maneuver in the olympics. but for now, the park is a hybrid of a lot of street elements and a swimming pool. it's the kind of thing you would find at a local skateboard which is more accessible than vert ramps. >> really quickly, nyjah huston this weekend, does he live up to the hype? >> he does. he is an olympic precision skater. between him and ute oragami in the street, shane o'neal is a favorite there, too. you will not believe what he can do with the skateboard consistently every time. >> tony, did you see that 1080?

>> i was there, right in front of me. >> just quickly, st years old, guy curry, what was that like to see? >> if vert makes it into the olympics in the future, guy will be one of the favorites. >> did you say 12 years old? >> 12 years old. thanks, buddy.

good friday morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall, and it is going to be slightly warmer reaching 90s in a few spots in the inland bay and the far bay. and highs in the upper 80s as the week goes along and san francisco gets less fog and more sunshine in the high upper 60s and we will stay in the weather pattern through next week while the valleys will be heating up.

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a very good friday morning to you and it is 9:26 right now. i'm laura garcia. cases of covid-19 continue to surge across the country and san francisco. contra costa and san francisco counties are looking at imposing covid policies. in june they required employees to be vaccinate and the emplo i yees will have to prove a medical or other special circumstances to be exempt. the excitement is building in tokyo as the 2020 opening

ceremony wrapped up. don't miss a beat, because you can catch the olympic zone at 4:00 p.m., and en encore at 4:30 this afternoon of the opening ceremony. and tonight at 9:00 p.m., you can see a special edition of the bay area news. looking at the forecast, it is friday afternoon and how are we looking? >> waking up to sunshine in san francisco and the bay area, and the temperatures will be coming up slightly especially for the the inland valleys where we don't get as much of the natural air conditioning, and 90s in the tri valley. thank you, laura. >> thank you very much and we will be back with another local news brief for you in about half an hour. enjoy your morning.

we are back, 12:30 eastern on this friday afternoon with a wind the scenes look at one of the highlights from this morning's opening ceremony of those tokyo games. this was that reimagined version of "imagine," described as a very special global music moment, definitely something to watch from the opening ceremony reairs in prime time tonight here on nbc. >> john legend, keith urban, so much more. starting on monday, we're going to open up our plaza so we can

have some fans come join. if you're fully vaccinated, put on your red, white and blue, pay a visit to our window to the world here and cheer on the athletes right here in rockefeller center. >> cannot wait. it's going to be something special. if you want to join us or learn more, head to today.com/plaza. >> a few days ago, someone said it's best to watch these things together. >> some things are meant to be watched as a group. if you're sitting in your apartment with your kids, come on down. right now we want to turn our attention to tokyo where a lot of precautions and protocols are in place to make sure these games go off without a hitch. >> nbc's stephanie gosk has been in tokyo can for quite some time now. stef, good early morning to you. >> hey, guys, nice to see you. like everyone else, i am itching to get out there and really experience this amazing city,

but until quarantine is over, everyone from the members of team usa to our own nbc team has to find creative ways to get into the olympic spirit. here in tokyo, there's a new olympic event. everyone from athletes to coaches to correspondents and anchors going for gold. and it starts the minute you touch down at the airport. >> we finally made it. now begins the covid protocols. >> everyone arriving for the games is required to pass through a covid obstacle course, a test on-site and waiting for the results. once cleared, athletes grab their credentials and head for the olympic village where they are tested daily. >> all right. so we just got to the olympic village. >> men's volleyball player eric shoji capturing long lines inside. >> there's my critical, yay. >> we started spitting in a tube for a covid test and then we head to the breakfast dining hall. >> inside the village dining hall, sanitizing is a must.

australia water polo player tilly kerns showing what it's like to sit down with her teammates. >> in every cubical, there are disinfecting wipes. so we wipe down everything we're going to touch. >> athletes separated by plastic barriers. and once masks are off, they're encouraged to make their meal as short as possible. >> these are the bomb. >> many olympians still making the most of this once in a lifetime experience. even with the challenges. >> the village has fun, interactive things where we can go and hang out. we wrote little notes to the japanese students and then we headed into the post office to take some pictures. >> usa wrestlers passing times between training and events with card games. women's volleyball showing off their team usa gear for fans. gymnasts sunisa lee and jordy chiles giving us a look at their day.

the highlight of my day is waking up in the morning and coming out on this balcony. check out the view. like everyone else, i am on the two-week quarantine. we are allowed one 15-minute walk about every day. >> i like to come to this shinto shrine for a little peace amid the madness. the building above me is the fuji headquarters. the orb above me is an observation point and probably the first thing godzilla grabs when he comes into the city. the next option is staying active indoors. >> what are you doing here? >> power walk. >> savannah and natalie have the idea. i did score a terrific trip organized by the city government for the media, a special boat ride in tokyo bay. i've been in japan for about three weeks which means that my quarantine is up and i have a week left, a golden week where i can get out, walk around the streets, eat some food, see some people. until then, this is my view,

which is pretty nice. >> traveling is heavil restricted for locals and fans here, too. organizers eliminated public viewing areas. and like we've seen all week, events and games will continue to be played without fans. >> i'm still excited. i'm trying to be very helpful even though we can't go to any of the events. >> so a cool note on that shinto shrine that i went to, it's on top of the aqua city mall which is right next to the hotel. it's a shrine for visitors like me to take in the sights and thank the gods that we're all here and at the mall. so when you guys come, i can show it to you. >> stef, you talked about that 15-minute window where you get to run out and go to the drugstore. how do they know if you're out for 15 minutes or 20 minutes or a half hour? >> it's a really good question. i'm not sure anyone has been nabbed for being out a little longer than 15 minutes, although i don't want to test the theory. the other day i was out for 14:20.

but i'll tell you what, hoda, when you come, you test it and let me know how it goes. >> i've got a question. so much of your piece right there, the footage was provided by images from tiktok. and i wondered are there any restrictions or rules as far as what athletes are allowed to post to social media behind the scenes? >> that's actually a really good question. i'm sure each delegation has its own set of standards and the ioc probably has them, as well. they seem to be pretty liberal. a lot of the athletes have more or less free reign. they have some great stuff there. >> stef, is the food good? >> oh, yeah. there's some great food. you just have to know where to find it, hoda. there are a few places. actually, you know, the food halls in the mall are pretty spectacular. so there's this dumpling place that we've been trying. it's so good. >> save a seat for us. >> a little recon. >> thanks, stef. coming up next, we have steve kornacki.

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♪♪ ♪♪ and the games are on. welcome back to this very special edition of "today." with so many events, athletes and place toes watch the tokyo olympics, we found just the guy who is up for the challenge of breaking it all down, al, and also the easiest packing job to tokyo. 14 khakis, 14 white shirts. >> same colors.

we're, of course, talking about the one, the only steve kornacki, king of khakis. take it away. >> well, it wasn't 14 pairs that i brought. it was probably about three or four, but there's washing machines here so it should be okay, they tell me. it's a challenge to try and go through the schedule because there are going to be in total 7,000 hours of olympic coverage on all of different nbc networks. so where do you find what here? i'll give you a little bit of a guide. nbc, this is the mother ship, the broadcast network. basically the rule of thumb is on any given day of the olympics, the biggest event that day, the biggest event especially if there's a medal of the line, look to nbc for that. but then, there are all sorts of other events constantly going on. all of the different cable channels here, part of the nbc family, telemundo, cnbc, usa, nbc sn, the olympic channel, you can find on any given day a wide assortment of events.

for instance, can we go back to that for a second? if we can go back, i can show you tomorrow, for instance, if you want to see the very first medal given out at the olympics, you're going to go to the usa network tomorrow and you're going to see the first medal given out in women's air rifle. >> nice. >> so that's where you would find that. by the way, if you're a bad badmatten fan, nbc usa. here is a shortcut. nbcolympics.com/schedule. go there, you can find everything. >> what about those cord cutters out there, folks who might be to stream it or watch it on the go, where do they go? >> yes. let's take a look here. this is that screen we had up a second ago. nbc.com/schedule, you can find everything or download the nbc sports app. either way here, you can stream.

you can stream events live, you can stream highlights. and the other one here, the big one is peacock. peacock, the streaming service, if you download or sign up for peacock, here is the key. big women's gymnastics fans out there, remember this huge time difference between tokyo and the u.s. when it's morning in the u.s., it's prime time here in tokyo. that means a lot of these major gymnastics events, simone biles, u.s. women's teams, they're going to be participating in their events when it's morning in the u.s. so you can go to the peacock, stream it and watch it live in the morning before it airs prime time on nbc. so a little bit of a work around there. >> and you've got some big events on your radar, steve. what do you have? >> gymnastics popped up here and i was just mentioning that. this is going to take center stage of all the sort of major events. gymnastics is going to be the first one to really take center stage. you've got qualifying this weekend.

you've got right away early next week you're going to be into the women's team competition. the women's team competition trying to win their third straight gold medal as a team. as soon as that ends, the women's all around is going to beginning next week. simone biles, she's going for her second straight gold medal in the all around. also there's a big question of there it's not so much will she win, there's an expectation how much will she win and how dominant will she be? that's the joy of watching simone biles. gymnastics takes center stage first. also this weekend, swimming. there are going to be some medals given out in swimming. you're going to start seeing that take place this weekend. and really, gymnastics, swimming kind of in the front end, the middle ends of these olympics and the last week or so, what is really going to take over, track and field. that's when that kind of -- end of july, first week of august there, that's when they start giving out the medals for track. gymnastics, swimming, track, kind of the order of operations

there for some of the big eventes. >> do you know what time that women's archery is on usa? magic board and let me know. >> nbcolympics.com/schedule. >> steve, did you carry on the big board or did you have to -- >> yes. it's that thing where you have to buy the extra seat. so hopefully we get our money's worth. >> steve, we'll see you there on sunday. >> you got it. >> you got it. >> w

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good friday morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall and looking at the wide-ranging temperatures across the area. half moon bay up to 74, and palo alto reaching 80, and 95 in concord with napa looking at 85. with the warmest spots inloond cooling off towards the end of the weekend, that is short lived as we warm up again middle to early next week.

and we're back and can we say what an incredible morning this has been for us. naomi osaka lit the cauldron today. >> i think it's set in. once you saw the opening ceremony, naomi osaka, and the athletes were weeping. it was a big moment for everybody. >> once you saw those athleteses coming in and you realize this is the one thing that we can all gather around together, we can all agree on that we want to see, it unites us, not just globally, but even in our own country. >> i think that's really cool. >> it felt like a global deep breath watching this morning after a couple of years being divided and seeing all the athletes stand united. that's the good stuff we've been waiting for for a long time. >> man, we needed that joy. we're pumped. we're all getting on planes,

we're get to go tokyo. craig, al and i will be there with savannah live on monday. but don't forget, guys, we want people to come to the plaza because we want a bunch of people out there to cheer team usa. >> bring your red, white and blue, baby. we have 16 days, right? >> kornacki just texted me. he needs two more pairs of khakis. i've got you, buddy. >> thank you so much for this special edition of "today" on this friday morning. before we let you go, though, we're going to send you off with a look at the highlights from the opening ceremony. and don't forget, you can see it all again tonight on nbc. >> see you from tokyo. ♪♪ ♪♪ usa! usa! ♪♪

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there's a night that will remind you how close the world is, and yet how closely linked the world is, and when the world comes together. creating a moment as beautiful as any that we have ever seen, a night that through it all, the athletes of the world never lost sight of. they never stopped pushing themselves for the chance just to get there. there's a night that will remind you that hope endures, that

allows us to believe in better tomorrows to come. ♪ can you feel it ♪♪ a night to celebrate the best of us. the opening ceremony of the tokyo olympics. a very good morning to you and it is 9:56. i'm laura garcia, and the covid cases continue to rise across california right now. more than eight new cases per 100,000 people. and yesterday 31 people died across the state, and in san francisco, the cases are rising dramatic. turning to the olympics, the games started in the shadow of the pandemic, and organizers are announcing more covid cases and three additional athletes have been tested positive. dreams have been dashed, and more cases are related to the games and mostly from the

support staff. to keep the virus from spreading, the fans are banned from all of the venues in the tokyo arena. right now, your bay area is the connection to all things tokyo. and don't miss a beat because we have a daily livestream live. another easy way is signing up for special olympics newsletter and you can do that on the website. in social media, abby fernandez is going to give us a shot of the olympic vibe on instagram, and check out synced in on the bay area instagram feed. more news tonight at 9:00 right here on nbc bay area. ♪♪ order for janine! this should be easy.... oh boy. well, we got this. janine! maybe she's the one in the green cap? janine! they're all in green caps janine! okay... uh... janine! janine! sooo... whatcha thinkin?

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journey to this moment, but despite all the challenges japan's capital city is set to stage the most ambitious complex olympic games in history. the flame of the olympic caldron no glows in the tokyo sky and now telling the world the games of the xxxii olympia have officially opened. i'm rebecca lowe. we