Olympics 2018: What order do the countries walk in during the Opening Ceremony?

Ever wonder how countries make their way into the Olympics Opening Ceremony? As it happens, there is a formal system for it.

The 2018 Winter Olympics have officially begun. Though most of the United States was asleep during the actual Opening Ceremony in Pyeongchang, we’re getting caught up with NBC’s prime time coverage and many viewers are wondering why the different countries march in the way they do. The answer is simple: There’s a system for it.

Since the Olympics date back to roots in Ancient Greece, the games are steeped in tradition. Greece always walks in first no matter where the games are held. The other nations file in alphabetically based upon the host nation’s language. The host nation comes in last after everyone else has made it inside.

The United States filed in with the countries that begin with the letter “M” because America in Korean is “Migug.”

Team USA came into the Opening Ceremony of the 2018 Winter Olympics with the largest contingent of athletes with 242, which is the largest number of athletes from any country in all of the Winter Games. They entered the stadium wearing their official Team USA Opening Ceremony gear courtesy of Ralph Lauren.

Also worth noting, courtesy of NBC, is that of the 242 Team USA athletes, 134 are men and 108 are women. There are 141 newcomers joining  37 returning medalists (including 10 gold medal winners). The oldest athlete is 39 while there are eight athletes born in the year 2000, with seven sets of siblings and the first married couple, pairs figure skaters Alexa Scimeca Knierim and Chris Knierim, to compete for Team USA since 2006.

Next: Best Olympian from each state

South Korean icon Yuna Kim, known as Queen Yuna, lit the torch to officially open the games after a festive Opening Ceremony celebrating host nation South Korea. With the games open, the athletes (those who haven’t started competing already) can look forward to getting underway in Pyeongchang.