Muhammad Ali lit the flame, and an entire generation ugly-cried. Peak '90s Americana.
Live coverage of the opening ceremony of the 1996 Summer Olympics which took place in the evening on Friday 19 July in the Centennial Olympic Stadium, Atlanta, United States.
Production
Stadium ceremony before LED screens ruined everything.
Score
Céline Dion belting while 85,000 people lose their minds.
Practical Effects
Actual humans doing choreography, not drones.
Director
Don Mischer
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Muhammad Ali received the replacement flame after the original was accidentally extinguished during a pause in the torch relay—he lit it trembling, and it became the defining image of the Games.
The '96 ceremony was peak pre-digital spectacle: 2,000 performers, zero screens, and the last Olympics before social media would turn every moment into instant meme material.
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