sending a message of hope to all the many millions of refugees around the globe. you had to flee from your homes because of violence, hunger or just because you were different. now, with your greatest talent and human spirit, you are making a great in this olympic world, we do not just tolerate diversity. in this olympic world, we welcome you as an enrichment to our unity in diversity.

there are millions of people around the world who contribute in different ways to make our world a better place through sport. to honor such outstanding personalities who put sport at the service of humanity, the international olympic committee has created a unique which we award for the first time now. ladies and gentlemen, in recognition of his outstanding achievements in the fields of education, culture, development, and peace through sport, in the true olympic spirit, the olympic

olympic philanthropist. i am an olympian gold medalist and olympic it is a home of athletes. when i was young, 8 years old, i used to run all way from my home to school. so i was really training without knowing. ?

my dad is the only one who would take care of me. so after my running, what i did, i started the children home with my wife. taking care of orphan kids to give them shelter and education. having a children's home, started a school. high school. and also the training center. and through sports, we can produce peaceful life in this world. ? ? hello. good afternoon. >> education is a weapon.

destruction, instead it can create peace. ? ? we came into the world with nothing, we will leave this world with nothing. all we need is peace, love and unity. ? ? >> ladies and gentlemen, kip

[ applause ] ? ? [ cheers and applause ] ? ?

>> now, let us celebrate altogether. olympic games, a la brazil. [ speaking portuguese ]

sky. the opening ceremony now, more formal protocol section. we are waiting for the arrival of the olympic flag, the olympic flame. >> lighting of the caldron. >> ladies and gentlemen, the olympic flag. always a beautiful moment at any olympic opening ceremony. eight prominent people from the host country having a chance to carry the olympic flag into the

this is emanuel rego, beach volleyball, three medals including gold. in five straight olympics starting in 1996. rosa celia pimentel. doctor and activist. offering no kids with health disease. >> sandra pires. beach volleyball player. won gold in olympic beach volleyball competition in 1996. also won the bronze medal in 2000. sandra pires.

five medals. golds in 1996. and in 2004. joaquim cruz, next, track star. won 800 meter gold in l.a. 800 meter silver in seoul. the brazil flagbearer in the 1996 atlanta games. next is marta soccer. pele once called her "pele with a skirt." player of the year. an olympic silver medalist. all time leading scorer in

ellen gracie northeilles. first woman that went to the brazil supreme court. first female president of the brazil's supreme court. that rousing round of applause is for the basketball player, scorer in olympic basketball history. let's listen. oscar schmidt. he was basketball hall of fame in 2013. ladies and gentlemen, please

? ? ? ? ? olympic flag immortal spirit ? ?

? ? ? ?

? ? ? ? ? ? >> local choir singing the olympic anthem. we are back with a samba party

moms know their kids need love. and encouragement. they also know milk is a nutrient powerhouse. with 8 grams of natural protein, plus 8 other essential nutrients. it's no surprise 9 out of 10 u.s. olympians grew up drinking milk.

[ hip hop beat throughout ] [ fans cheering ] ? olympics 2016, let me get you on my level. ? ? so you never miss a moment, ? ? miss a minute, miss a medal. ? ? why settle when you can have it all? ? ? soccer to wrestling. track and field to basketball. ? ? fencing to cycling. diving to balance beam. ? ? all you have to say is, ? ? ?show me,? and boom it's on the screen. ? ? from the bottom of the mat, ? ? to the couch where you at? ? ? "show me the latest medal count?" ? ? dang they even got that! ? welcome to it all. watch the rio olympics on nbc networks starting august 5th. back in rio, who is ready for a party? >> i am. >> i am. >> if you have never been to

get a very good sampl ethe energy is like. ? ? [ speaking portuguese ] >> this is a rio-born percussionist, 80 years old. >> dejuan lucas, dancing samba since he could walk, he "born in samba" the expression that brazilians use.

? ? ? ? ? ?

? ? >> all of these people you see marching in, samba dancing, they're from samba school. meredith is busy googling where she can buy the outfit. they actually compete every carnival. but tonight they're not competing with each i love the costumes. ? ? >> this is anitta, 23-year-old

? ? ? ? ?

? ? ? ? >> like people that are bold enough to give it a go. ? ? >> we have to tell you a couple nights ago, meredith told hoda and me she actually went to youtube and looked up samba videos so she could learn the samba. to be honest, nothing she showed us resembles what is going on on the floor right now. >> that is so unfair. i just couldn't go as fast as they can.

you think about it. all in the mind. in my mind i am just doing really well. >> anitta, caetano veloso, and gilberto gil, with the samba here in rio. olympic flame. here comes the olympic flame now into this stadium. after a relay that has lasted for a very long time.

people. visited 500 towns. all state capitals of brazil. 12,000 torch bearers have brought it to this final point. the man carrying the torch, gustavo kuerten, tennis star, three time french open champ, ranked number one. he is entering the stadium right now. >> the olympic flame is being

gustavo kuerten, two time champion, former number one in the world. gustavo kuerten! [ cheers and applause ] >> now, he passes the torch to one of the greatest female brazilian basketball players of

? ? and she hands the flame to this man, vanderlei de lima, former marathoner, 46-year-old. remember athens in 2004, he was leading the olympic marathon when a spectator attacked him. he went from first to third. he received an incredible sportsmanship award. but tonight, he gets something better. tonight, he gets to light the olympic caldron in his home

[ cheers and applause ] ?

? ? ? >> there must be 20,000 portable phone cameras capturing this inside this stadium right now.

beautifully in the mirrored chandelier almost behind it. ?

so the caldron has been lit. the first full day of competition tomorrow. want to tell you to stay tuned for the emmy nominated tonight show with jimmy fall on, jerry seinfeld, seth rogan. for meredith vieira and hoda kotb, i'm matt lauer. we have had a blast in rio, the games are under way after an opening ceremony to remember. good night, everybody.

i note the obvious differences in the human family. some of us are serious, some thrive on comedy. i've sailed upon the seven seas and stopped in every land, i've seen the wonders of the world i know ten thousand women called jane and mary jane, i've not seen any two who really were the same. mirror twins are different although their features jibe, and lovers think quite different thoughts while lying side by side. i note the obvious differences

unalike. we are more alike, my friends, than we are unalike.

>> anchor: we are live in rio with an amazing night. brazilian flair. s a star-studded summer start. and some familiar faces. with the whole world watching. rio is ready. it is the olympic opening ceremonies. >> anchor: there is more news tonight. >> anchor: first on alert, on the cape. as many as six sharks spotted swimming near the shore forcing beaches to close and people out of the water. >> anchor: also tom brady

why he decided to end his fight and accept his suspension. >> >> reporter: tracking scattered showers and storms. timeline coming up. >> anchor: a big gator found from florida. where it was found slithering around new england. >> anchor: first this morning, crews on the cape watching the water for sharks just like this one. the concern is so high, three beaches were closed today. >> anchor: as we head into the weekend, they are worried as many as six great whites are still near the shore. john cuoco is live right now in truro. >> reporter: well, kim, these are the signs that were posted earlier today. warning people about the sharks closing the beaches to swimming. people here say it is strange to see sharks on this side of the bay. a feeding frenzy in cape cod bay off north truro. sharks tearing into a whale carcass. according to the center for coastal studies, it was first spotted on wednesday.

>> which rather surprised me. you don't often get sharks on the bay side here. >> anchor: then on friday, the town of truro got a report of six great white sharks eating the 11-foot dead whale. >> i think it is pretty unusual. i don't think it is anything to get overly worried about. they will feed on the whale. when they are done, they will be going someplace else. >> anchor: the town is asking people to stay out of the water. >> we saw the sign over there. the beach was closed. because of sharks. >> reporter: now people are told to stay alert. and report any sightiand ngs tos in the water. >> no. i'm not going to go in at all. you know, hopefully, we will see the shark, though. >> behave yourself and you will be fine. >> reporter: now, that whale has washed ashore. right now researchers are trying to figure out how that

>> lighting up the night with the world watching. brazil shines in an olympic opening. >> anchor: and here is the moment everybody waited for all night long. the lighting of the flame. and the brazilian marathoner doing the honors. he lit this cauldron it inside the stadium to officially kick off the 2016 summer games in rio. so tonight was all about honoring brazil's past and forging a brighter future. >> anchor: it was a star-studded opening ceremony. with more than a few connections to here in boston. that includes gisele bundchen. out of retirement and fiercely strutting down a long runway. later, she was seen in the stands partying with the rest of her country. >> anchor: when the americans walked out, it was olympic legend michael phelps leading

you can hear the crowd cheering. >> anchor: amazing night capped with a jaw-dropping view from outside the arena. fireworks lighting up the stadium and an amazing view of the famous christ the redeemer statue. more on what a spectacular show it was, nancy. >> nancy: oh, my gosh. yes. what a show. there is there was so much color. so much pride. all eyes were on rio tonight. and they fully embraced the spotlight. now, the organizers took on the controversy surrounded the country these past couple of years. they also sent a message to the world that the best has yet to come. the world coming together for a party in rio de janeiro. music filled the stadium as the host country put its culture on play. a golden moment for gisele bundchen. the brazilian supermodel came out of retirement to pay