PARIS, France: Thousands of athletes are set to sail through central Paris on Friday during an unprecedented and high-risk Olympics opening ceremony that will showcase France’s ambitious vision for the Games. Up to 7,500 competitors will parade down a six-kilometer stretch of the river Seine on a flotilla of 85 boats.
Unlike the Covid-blighted 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which opened in an empty stadium, the Paris show will unfold before 300,000 cheering spectators and an audience of VIPs and celebrities from around the world. Emmanuel Macron, the president of France, assured heads of state and government during a pre-Games luncheon at the Louvre museum that “tomorrow you will have one of the most incredible opening ceremonies.”
The lineup of performers remains a closely guarded secret, but rumors suggest US pop star Lady Gaga and French-Malian singer Aya Nakamura might be among them. This will be the first time a Summer Olympics opens outside the main athletics stadium, a decision fraught with danger at a time when France is on its highest alert for terrorism. Despite ongoing concerns, organizers have insisted there is no plan B.
A huge security perimeter has been established along both banks of the Seine, guarded round-the-clock by some of the 45,000 police and paramilitary officers who will be on duty Friday evening. An additional 10,000 soldiers and 22,000 private security guards will bolster the security efforts.
“Without any doubt, it is much more difficult to secure half of Paris than to secure a stadium, where you have 80,000 people and you can frisk them and send them through turnstiles,” said Frederic Pechenard, an ex-director general of the French police. Police snipers will be positioned on every high point along the route, and armed officers will be on the boats.
The Israeli and Palestinian teams will receive extra protection due to heightened tensions from Israel’s offensive in Gaza, where nearly 40,000 people are estimated to have died. Protests are anticipated, as seen when Palestinian flags were waved and the Israeli anthem was booed during an Israeli football match earlier in the week.
The opening ceremony will feature around 3,000 dancers performing from the banks of the river and nearby monuments, including Notre-Dame cathedral. The show will promote diversity, gender equality, and French history, with the landmarks and architecture of Paris serving as a backdrop.
Paris aims to deliver a more cost-effective and less polluting Olympics than previous editions, with competitions held at historic locations around the capital. Some events have already started, including football, rugby sevens, and archery, with the latter taking place in front of the golden-domed Invalides, Napoleon’s final resting place.
US gymnastics superstar Simone Biles, set to be one of the faces of the Games, has begun training at the Bercy Arena. Biles is favored to add to her four Olympic gold medals at the Paris Games following a turbulent Tokyo campaign three years prior.
The ambitious opening ceremony is expected to set the tone for the Games, which will run from July 26 to August 11. As Hugh Robertson, the minister responsible for delivering the 2012 London Olympics, told AFP, “The opening ceremony is a huge event and one that, arguably, sets the tone for the next 17 days.”
