Olympic champion Jessica Fox and hockey star Eddie Ockenden will bear the flag for Australia at the opening ceremony of the Games in Paris.
Their names were revealed at the Monnaie de Paris by Australian Olympic team chef de mission and former cyclist Anna Meares on Wednesday night (AEST).
The packed room erupted in applause when Meares, herself the flag bearer at the 2016 Olympics, announced Fox and then Ockenden.
The duo will carry the nation’s flag at Saturday morning’s (AEST) , which will take place on the River Seine.
French-born Fox, 30, is chasing three gold medals in canoe and kayak slalom events at her fourth Games and is one of the biggest names competing at the Paris Olympics.
She will defend her Olympic title in the C1 and be among the favourites in the K1 and the canoe slalom, a new event at the Games.
Fox’s younger sister Noemie is making her Olympic debut in the canoe slalom.
Ockenden, 37, is competing at his fifth Olympics with the Kookaburras and is a three-time hockey Games medallist.
The Tasmanian has already amassed more than 400 Tests and could finish his career as the most-capped Australian in any sport.
Olympic gold has eluded him, with silver in a shootout loss in Tokyo not deterring the 37-year-old from pushing on to Paris.
What to expect for the opening ceremony
Football and Rugby Sevens kick off the sport at the Paris Olympics Wednesday, two days before the opening ceremony.
Preparations for the opening ceremony are in full swing with an unprecedented security operation for the athlete’s parade along the River Seine.
Around 6,000-7,000 athletes are set to sail down a six-kilometre (four-mile) stretch of the river towards the Eiffel Tower, on 85 barges and boats.
Up to 500,000 people are set to watch in person from specially built stands, on the river banks and from the overlooking balconies and apartments.
The area around the river has been locked down before the ceremony, with snipers positioned along the route and frogmen deployed to prevent a waterborne attack.
The entertainment line-up for the ceremony, the first time a Summer Olympics has opened outside the main stadium, is yet to be fully announced.
But videos posted online showing US pop star Lady Gaga in Paris sparked rumours she will be among the performers.
American rapper Snoop Dogg will carry the Olympic flame as it makes its final rounds before the ceremony.
Source Agencies
