34 Thrilling Photos From the Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony

"Our games will be cool," assured Dmitry Chernyshenko, president of the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee, during his speech at the Winter Olympics opening ceremony Friday.

The festivities, which NBC will broadcast stateside at 7:30 p.m. ET Friday, opened with the Parade of Nations, where athletes from 88 national delegations introduced themselves by walking into Fisht Olympic Stadium while wielding their countries' flags. The three-hour ceremony continued with a glimpse at Russian history (watch NBC's sneak peeks, below)

The night ended with hockey legend Vladislav Tretiak and figure skater Irina Rodnina lighting the Olympic Cauldron. They were the final torchbearers on the months-long torch relay, which included sending the torch to space and even underwater Read more...