Bob Costas covered his first Olympics for NBC in 1988, hosting the opening ceremony for most of the Olympics for nearly three decades afterward.
The fact that he wasn't back in his usual perch describing athletes parading around the opening ceremony in Pyeongchang, South Korea, on Friday night was a shock to many who didn't know he had announced a year ago he'd cede the job to Mike Tirico.
Opening ceremony: Highlights from the celebration in Pyeongchang
"I am going to be like the rest of the country, watching Mike Tirico, who will be an able successor in Korea for the Winter Olympics” Costas said on the Today show last February.