Olympics Opening Ceremony 2022: Latest Rumors, Fun Prop Bets and Odds

The 2022 Winter Olympics are quickly approaching, and the competition in Beijing is expected to be tremendous. With thrilling events such as ice hockey, figure skating and snowboarding on the schedule—as well as more niche sports like curling and luge—fans of winter games will have plenty to enjoy.

The action will largely kick off on Friday with the opening ceremony, though not officially, as competition began on Wednesday.

As was the case with last year's Summer Games opening in Tokyo, we're not going to see the crowds of years past. Last month, China announced tickets would not be for sale, and select groups of spectators would be invited to attend the events instead.

"The organisers expect that these spectators will strictly abide by the COVID-19 countermeasures before, during and after each event as pre-conditions for the safe and sound delivery of the Games," the Beijing 2022 organizing committee said in a statement.

As the Tokyo opening ceremony proved, though, a different atmosphere doesn't mean a lack of spectacle. When the festivities kick off at the National Stadium on Friday, there will be plenty to watch.

Here, you'll find everything you need to know for the 2022 opening ceremony, including scheduling information, the latest buzz and some fun prop bets to consider.

Date: Friday, February 4

Time: 6:30 a.m. ET (7:30 p.m. local time in China)

TV: NBC

Live Stream: NBC Sports app, NBCOlympics.com and Peacock

*Full events schedule can be found at Olympics.com.

While it's impossible to know exactly what China has in store for the opening ceremony, several performers are expected to be in attendance.

According to Yanis Varoufakis of MNA International, around 3,000 performers will be present, with a large focus on youth performers.

"Everyone strives to present Chinese teenagers to the world," Hebei North University student Deng Shaomei said.

According to Chan Kin-wa of the South China Morning Post, the ceremony is expected to run for roughly 100 minutes and focus on themes that are meant to show the country's willingness to pursue world peace.

These themes will likely come in contrast to global concerns that have followed reports of human rights abuses by the Chinese government. The United States, the United Kingdom and Canada plan to stage diplomatic boycotts of the Olympics as a result.

According to Amnesty International, this has included persecution of human rights activists and "wide-ranging repression of ethnic minorities" in the autonomous regions of Xinjiang and Tibet.

"U.S. diplomatic or official representation would treat these games as business as usual in the face of the PRC's [People's Republic of China] egregious human rights abuses and atrocities in Xinjiang," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said, per the BBC News.

Several countries will send official delegations to the Olympics and the opening ceremony. According to Li Xiaosi, the Chinese ambassador to Austria, "25 heads of state or heads of government and 7 heads of international organizations" will attend the ceremony.

Taiwan's team will also attend the opening ceremony after previously stating that it would miss the event due to flight and COVID-19 issues.

"The U-turn was apparently in response to intervention by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which wanted all teams to take part in the ceremonies," Lawrence Chung of the South China Morning Post noted.

While the United States won't send an official delegation to the opening ceremony, about 150 American athletes are expected to appear, according to Rachel Blount of the Star-Tribune. Among them will be John Shuster, the first American curler to be named a flag-bearer.

"Being elected as one of the flag-bearers is a tremendous honor,'' Shuster said in a statement, per Blount. "When thinking back to my Opening Ceremony experiences, I cannot help but be so proud to lead Team USA into an Olympic Winter Games. [It] is one of the greatest honors of my sporting career."

Fans who want to do a little wagering ahead of the opening ceremony can bet on many of the early and most popular events. Those looking to wager on the Games as a whole, though, may want to consider medal props.

Prop bets centered around the medal count can be a lot of fun because they encompass every event. They provide reasons to follow each individual sport and to follow the Games. Fans who know nothing about curling or the biathlon can develop rooting interests, as they will impact the medal count.

Several medal-count props can be found, and we'll examine a few here. First, though, let's examine some medal-count predictions from Gracenote.

According to Gracenote's Virtual Medal Table, Norway is projected to lead the count with 21 golds and 44 total medals. Germany is predicted to finish second with 30 medals and 11 golds. The Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) rounds out the top three with 10 golds and 30 total medals.

Team USA is projected to come in fourth with seven golds and 22 total medals.

Odds for Most Gold Medals

Norway: 10-37

Germany: 15-2

ROC: 10-1

Canada: 15-1

USA: 18-1

Netherlands: 50-1

Odds for Most Medals

Norway 10-47

ROC 17-2

Germany 10-1

Canada 18-1

USA 18-1

Netherlands 80-1

USA Medal Props

Total Medals: Over/Under 22.5

Gold Medals: Over/Under 8.5

*All odds via FanDuel.

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