(VOVworld)-  The 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro have officially opened with a flamboyant ceremony celebrating Brazil’s history and cultural diversity, all to the pulsating beat of samba, bossa nova and funk.

Athletes from 206 nations and a refugee team are in Brazil to compete in 28 sports and be watched by a global audience of billions.  An estimated three billion people watched the ceremony which has taken five years to produce and includes 300 dancers, 5,000 volunteers and 12,000 costumes. There will be 10,500 athletes from a record 207 teams competing in Rio, including the Refugee Olympic Team, while it will be the first time Kosovo and South Sudan have taken part in the Games. With 554 athletes, the United States has the largest Olympic team, but 100m runner Etimoni Timuani is the only athlete from the South Pacific nation of Tuvalu. The Rio Games will be the first to feature Olympians born since the year 2000 - and the youngest is 13-year-old Nepalese swimmer Gaurika Singh. Vietnam aims to win one or two medals at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with highest hope pinned on weightlifters Thach Kim Tuan and Vuong Thi Huyen and marksman Hoang Xuan Vinh. 23 athletes representing the country will compete at the Games.