Olympic Opening Ceremonies 2018: Best Social Highlights and Reaction

The 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, officially kicked off with a stunning opening ceremony at the Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium on Friday.

It included a historic moment as the Korean team made up of athletes from both North Korea and South Korea entered the stadium under a unified flag at the culmination of the parade of nations.

BBC Sport provided footage of the hosts' entrance:

A theme of peace encompassed the ceremony, which included a remarkable artistic segment representing Korea's history and culture, as well as looking to the future.

PA Sport provided some images of the festivities:

The Olympic rings were also duly reproduced in an impressive display:

All 92 nations set to compete were represented at the opening ceremony. So were United States president Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, in a fashion, per Sports Illustrated:

Notably, there was no Russian flag on show. The athletes from Russia entered under the Olympic flag, as the Huffington Post noted:

Perhaps most eye-catching was Pita Taufatofua, Tonga's sole representative at the 2018 Games. He reproduced his shirtless look from the 2016 Olympics despite the freezing temperatures after swapping taekwondo for cross-country skiing.

The Press Association's Mark Staniforth provided comments from Taufatofua:

Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee, greeted the assembled spectators and athletes in the stadium and made a notable reference to doping in his comments, per Nick Butler of InsidetheGames:

As ever, the ceremony culminated in the lighting of the Olympic flame.

Per NBC Olympics' Nick McCarvel, the honour was bestowed on 2010 figure skating gold-medallist Yuna Kim, who was clearly moved by the experience:

A spectacular firework-laden finale brought the ceremony to a close. BBC Sport's Nick Hope provided a glowing review:

Though some sports had already begun competition ahead of the ceremony, the 2018 Pyeongchang Games is now officially underway and will continue in earnest on Saturday.