Ahmed Fareed and 13-Time Paralympic Medalist Chris Waddell to Anchor Opening Ceremony Coverage Starting at 2 p.m. ET on USA Network and Peacock
Making Space & Making Space Media Co-Founder Sophie Morgan to Host Pre-Show Coverage Beginning at 1 p.m. ET on USA Network and Peacock
Primetime Presentation of Opening Ceremony and Day 1-2 Highlights this Friday, Aug. 30, at 9 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock
STAMFORD, Conn. – Aug. 28, 2024 – NBCUniversal’s coverage of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games presented by Toyota will begin today, Wednesday, Aug. 28, with live coverage of the Opening Ceremony at 1 p.m. ET on USA Network and Peacock. A primetime presentation of highlights of Opening Ceremony and the first two days of competition will air this Friday, Aug. 30, at 9 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock.
Ahmed Fareed will host coverage of the Opening Ceremony for a third consecutive time beginning at 2 p.m. ET with 13-time Paralympic medalist and Paralympic Hall of Fame member Chris Waddell. Waddell will also serve as a host throughout NBCU’s Paralympics coverage while Fareed will host all coverage on NBC. Pre-show coverage will be hosted by Making Space & Making Space Media co-founder and disability advocate Sophie Morgan, beginning at 1 p.m. ET on USA Network and Peacock.
The Opening Ceremony will be taken outside the confines of a traditional stadium on the Place de la Concorde and the Champs-Elysées. The ceremony will open with a parade involving up to 168 delegations from around the world and will be open to spectators, who can experience it alongside 6,000 athletes and officials, and will additionally feature celebrations, the lighting of the Paralympic cauldron, Parade of Nations, and more.
Four-time wheelchair basketball Paralympian and two-time gold medalist Steve Serio and 2016 Rio Paralympic sitting volleyball gold medalist Nicky Nieves were selected to be Team USA’s Opening Ceremony flagbearers.
Live competition coverage begins tomorrow, Thursday, Aug. 29, at 5 a.m. ET on USA Network and Peacock, highlighted by swimming, wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby, and cycling. Starting tomorrow and running every day through Sept. 7, Gold Zone, Peacock’s breakout Paris Olympic hit, streams live on Peacock from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. ET. Paris 2024 marks the first time the Paralympics will get live whip-around show treatment, showcasing the must-see Paralympic moments as they unfold. A comprehensive programming schedule can be found here.
NBCU’s Paris 2024 Paralympic Games coverage will include the most streaming hours ever for a Paralympics with approximately 1,500 hours of live coverage across all 22 Paralympic sports set to be streamed on Peacock throughout the duration of the 12-day event. Peacock’s extensive Paralympics hub will be easily accessible on the Peacock home page from the left navigation menu and will feature curated rails of live and upcoming events; dedicated in-depth sections for each Paralympic sport; simul-streams of the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, and NBC, USA Network and CNBC coverage; full-event replays; curated video clips; Gold Zone; medal standings; and an interactive schedule.
Additionally, more than 140 hours of Paris Paralympic television coverage across NBC, USA Network, and CNBC will be presented. NBCParalympics.com, NBC.com, and the NBC Sports app will provide streaming coverage via authentication.
NBCUniversal has exclusive media rights to the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games in the United States.
Toyota Motor Corporation has returned as the presenting sponsor of NBCUniversal’s exclusive coverage of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Toyota’s ‘power of community’ message will be showcased pre, during and post Paralympic Games coverage with primetime in-show, and out of-show-integrations. NBCUniversal also reported a record number of advertisers generating a +60% increase in sales compared to the Tokyo Paralympic Games.
A complete archive of Paris Paralympics press releases can be found here. For more information about NBC Sports, including releases and the latest news, please visit NBCSports.com/PressBox.
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