Amid concerns about protests, strikes, security and whatever might be floating in the Seine, the City of Light is about to strike a pose on its yearslong Olympics runway.

For the next 19 days, Paris will be in front of the international lens as more than 10,000 athletes and seemingly countless fans converge on France to witness and revel in the first Summer Games held in front of crowds in eight years.

That group will include the nearly 600 athletes competing for Team USA, many of whom are favorites for gold across the 329 events slated to be held.

Here’s everything you need to know about how and who to watch during the Paris Games:

When do the Paris Olympics begin?

The opening ceremony takes place Friday night in Paris, but the first events start Wednesday at 6 a.m. PDT (3 p.m. Paris time) when Argentina plays Morocco and Uzbekistan faces Spain in men’s soccer.

Rugby sevens, archery and handball also will start before the opening ceremony. The first medals will be awarded Saturday.

The Paris Olympics will end Sunday, Aug. 11, with the women’s basketball gold medal game slated to be the final event.

How to watch the Paris Olympics opening ceremony

The Paris Olympics opening ceremony will take place at 10:30 a.m. PDT and will be shown live on NBC and Peacock.

NBC will reair the ceremony at 4:30 p.m. Friday.

The opening ceremony is scheduled to occur outside a stadium for the first time, with the “Parade of Nations” scheduled to take part on boats floating down the Seine River in front of the Eiffel Tower.

How to watch and stream the Paris Olympics

The daily window for events at the Paris Olympics runs from roughly 12 a.m. PDT until about 2 p.m. (Paris is six hours ahead of New York). Linear networks USA, E!, CNBC, Golf Channel, Telemundo and Universo will have coverage every day of the Olympics, with all live coverage ending around 2 p.m. PDT. “Paris Primetime” will air each night on NBC, usually at 7 p.m. or 8 p.m., offering a recap of the day’s biggest events and moments.

Though NBC networks will broadcast many live events, including viewer favorites such as gymnastics, swimming and track and field, a large portion of coverage will be exclusively on streaming platforms.

Peacock will broadcast every event live and will have replays and highlights on demand. Cable and satellite subscribers can log into NBCOlympics.com at no additional charge to watch any event.

Part of Peacock’s coverage will include Gold Zone, an NFL Red Zone-like show streaming from 4 a.m.-2 p.m. PDT each day.

NBCUniversal also launched two temporary Olympics channels. “Paris Extra 1” will show a range of live and delayed events, with a focus on team sports such as basketball, handball, water polo and field hockey. “Paris Extra 2” will feature mostly combat and racket sports such as boxing, judo, taekwondo, badminton and table tennis.

Who will be competing for Team USA?

There will be 592 athletes representing the United States in Paris, with 119 from California — the most of any state (Florida is next with 44 athletes and Texas third with 38). With baseball and softball not being played, the total number is down from the 613 U.S. athletes who competed in Tokyo.

The U.S. will compete in 31 of the 32 sports (U.S. handball teams will make their long-awaited return in 2028). There is one sport making its Olympic debut — breaking (don’t call it break dancing, though).

Women will comprise the majority of athletes competing for the U.S., with 314 (53% of Team USA) — the most women for any nation.

From 16 to 59

The youngest athlete at the Olympics will be gymnast Hezly Rivera. She turned 16 just before competing in the U.S. Olympic gymnastics trials and is the only first timer on the squad (other than the reserves). While she is the youngest, 16-year-olds Paige Heyn (skateboarding street) and Quincy Wilson (4×400 mixed relay) will also be in Paris. Wilson is the youngest man to ever qualify for the U.S. in track and field.

The oldest U.S. Olympian in Paris? That goes to equestrian rider Steffen Peters, who will compete in team and individual dressage at age 59.

Peters is appearing in his sixth Olympics after making his debut at the 1996 Atlanta Games.

Basketball star Diana Taurasi and equestrian competitor McLain Ward have appeared in six consecutive Olympics dating to the 2004 Athens Games.