Olympic Ceremony 2021 Order of Countries: When Is Team USA Appearing?

The U.S. is slated to be among the last three countries to appear in the parade of athletes at the Tokyo Olympics opening ceremony.

Speaking to Newsweek, a spokesperson for the Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games said: "Teams from the upcoming host countries of the corresponding Games will now march immediately before the current host delegation, which traditionally closes the athletes' parade."

Back in December 2019, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced that France and the U.S.—the host countries for the upcoming Olympic Games in 2024 and 2028, respectively—will march just before Japan, to promote the future games.

So Team USA will be followed by France's team before Japan's Olympic athletes conclude the procession.

This year's marching order breaks the tradition of the parade outlined by the official Olympic Charter, which states: "The delegations parade in alphabetical order according to the language of the host country, except for Greece, which leads the parade, and for the host country, which brings up the rear."

The IOC stated: "The aim of the change is to increase the special focus that future hosts already enjoy over the course of their Games preparations by giving them prominence in the stadium and among global audiences during opening ceremonies."

Greece leads the parade of athletes as it is the historic site where the ancient Olympic Games were held and where the first edition of the modern Games took place in 1896.

The IOC said it intends to have future host countries march last at upcoming Olympic Games opening ceremonies, Kyodo News reported in December 2019.

In another break from historical tradition, the marching order for the parade of athletes will be based on the alphabetical order of the Japanese language, rather than English, which was used when Japan previously hosted the Olympics, according to Kyodo News and the BBC.

The marching orders at the 1964 Summer Games in Tokyo, the 1972 Winter Games in Sapporo and the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano were based on the English language to reflect the country's international understanding, Kyodo News reported.

However, this year's break from tradition aims to highlight the Japanese language, placing it at the center of the annual parade, the news agency reported in October 2020.

Other Olympic Ceremony Protocols

The opening ceremony of the Olympics entails several elements, as outlined by Rule 55 of the Olympic Charter which outlines "the protocol that must be observed at the Opening Ceremony of the Games, including the wording of the opening words to be delivered by the representative of host country," the official Olympics website explains.

Below are some of the protocols that must be fulfilled.

Marching Rules

In addition to the marching order according to the language of the host country, athletes must march behind the flag of the country.

The Olympics website says: "Delegations should be treated equally! No single country must receive greater attention than any other. Each delegation is preceded by a board bearing its country's name, and by its flag. The usual practice is for the athletes to march behind the flag of their country, but there are sometimes exceptions."

Lighting of the Olympic Torch

The Olympic flame and the torch relay have become "two features of protocol that are inextricably linked" since the Olympic Games in Berlin in 1936, the website notes.

The flame is carried by relay from Olympia in Greece, where the ancient Olympic Games were held, to the Olympic stadium in the host city. The final torchbearer does a lap of the stadium before the flame is used to light the Olympic cauldron, which is extinguished only at the closing ceremony of the Olympics.

The Olympics website explains: "The Ancient Greeks considered fire to be a divine element, and they kept fires burning constantly in front of their principal temples.

"In ancient times, the flame was lit using the rays of the sun, to ensure its purity, and a skaphia, the ancestor of the parabolic mirror used today to light the Olympic flame," the website adds.

Symbolic Release of the Doves

Doves are symbols of peace and after 1988, the opening ceremony has called for a symbolic release of the birds.

From 1936 to 1988, real pigeons were used for the ritual. But after the 1988 Summer Games in South Korea, the use of real birds was replaced by a symbolic release "following the unfortunate demise of several pigeons sitting on the edge of the Olympic cauldron at the Opening Ceremony of the Games in Seoul," the Olympics website says.

This symbolic release now takes place after the parade of athletes and before the lighting of the Olympic cauldron.

Official Opening of the Games

The host country's "Head of State" officially opens the Games by proclaiming: "I declare open the Games of ... (name of City) celebrating the ... Olympiad of the modern era (or the ... Olympic Winter Games)," as outlined in the Olympic Charter.

This is usually proclaimed by royalty and presidents, or their representatives, including a vice-president, a member of the royal family, or a governor-general, according to the Olympics website.

Raising of the Olympic Flag

Following the opening of the Games, the Olympic flag is raised. "The Olympic flag, unfurled horizontally, is brought into the stadium. The Olympic anthem is performed as the flag is raised to the top of the pole," the Olympics website says.

The flag must remain raised for the duration of the Games.

Full Marching Order for Parade of Athletes

1. Greece
2. Refugee Olympic Team
3. Iceland
4. Ireland
5. Azerbaijan
6. Afghanistan
7. United Arab Emirates
8. Algeria
9. Argentina
10. Aruba
11. Albania
12. Armenia
13. Angola
14. Antigua and Barbuda
15. Andorra
16. Yemen
17. Israel
18. Italy
19. Iraq
20. Iran
21. India
22. Indonesia
23. Uganda
24. Ukraine
25. Uzbekistan
26. Uruguay
27. Great Britain
28. British Virgin Islands
29. Ecuador
30. Egypt
31. Estonia
32. Eswatini
33. Ethiopia
34. Eritrea
35. El Salvador
36. Australia
37. Austria
38. Oman
39. Netherlands
40. Ghana
41. Cape Verde
42. Guyana
43. Kazakhstan
44. Qatar
45. Canada
46. Gabon
47. Cameroon
48. The Gambia
49. Cambodia
50. North Macedonia
51. Guinea
52. Guinea-Bissau
53. Cyprus
54. Cuba
55. Kiribati
56. Kyrgyzstan
57. Guatemala
58. Guam
59. Kuwait
60. Cook Islands
61. Grenada
62. Croatia
63. Cayman Islands
64. Kenya
65. Ivory Coast
66. Costa Rica
67. Kosovo
68. Comoros
69. Colombia
70. Republic of the Congo
71. Democratic Republic of the Congo
72. Saudi Arabia
73. Samoa
74. São Tomé and Príncipe
75. Zambia
76. San Marino
77. Sierra Leone
78. Djibouti
79. Jamaica
80. Georgia
81. Syria
82. Singapore
83. Zimbabwe
84. Switzerland
85. Sweden
86. Sudan
87. Spain
88. Suriname
89. Sri Lanka
90. Slovakia
91. Slovenia
92. Seychelles
93. Equatorial Guinea
94. Senegal
95. Serbia
96. Saint Kitts and Nevis
97. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
98. Saint Lucia
99. Somalia
100. Solomon Islands
101. Thailand
102. South Korea
103. Tajikistan
104. Tanzania
105. Czech Republic
106. Chinese Taipei
107. Chad
108. Central African Republic
109. China
110. Tunisia
111. Chile
112. Tuvalu
113. Denmark
114. Germany
115. Togo
116. Dominica
117. Dominican Republic
118. Trinidad and Tobago
119. Turkmenistan
120. Turkey
121. Tonga
122. Nigeria
123. Nauru
124. Namibia
125. Nicaragua
126. Niger
127. New Zealand
128. Nepal
129. Norway
130. Bahrain
131. Haiti
132. Pakistan
133. Panama
134. Vanuatu
135. Bahamas
136. Papua New Guinea
137. Bermuda
138. Palau
139. Paraguay
140. Barbados
141. Palestine
142. Hungary
143. Bangladesh
144. East Timor
145. Fiji
146. Philippines
147. Finland
148. Bhutan
149. Puerto Rico
150. Brazil
151. Bulgaria
152. Burkina Faso
153. Brunei
154. Burundi
155. American Samoa
156. Virgin Islands
157. Vietnam
158. Benin
159. Venezuela
160. Belarus
161. Belize
162. Peru
163. Belgium
164. Poland
165. Bosnia and Herzegovina
166. Botswana
167. Bolivia
168. Portugal
169. Hong Kong
170. Honduras
171. Marshall Islands
172. Madagascar
173. Malawi
174. Mali
175. Malta
176. Malaysia
177. Federated States of Micronesia
178. South Africa
179. South Sudan
180. Myanmar
181. Mexico
182. Mauritius
183. Mauritania
184. Mozambique
185. Monaco
186. Maldives
187. Moldova
188. Morocco
189. Mongolia
190. Montenegro
191. Jordan
192. Laos
193. Latvia
194. Lithuania
195. Libya
196. Liechtenstein
197. Liberia
198. Romania
199. Luxembourg
200. Rwanda
201. Lesotho
202. Lebanon
203. U.S.
204. France
205. Japan

Update 7/23/21, 9:51 a.m ET: This article was updated with comment from Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.