PARIS, FRANCE: Paris is eagerly anticipating what promises to be the most ambitious Paris Olympics opening ceremony in history, set to take place on the River Seine in just a few hours.
On Friday, up to 7,500 competitors will sail down a six-kilometre stretch of the Seine on 90 boats, accompanied by a performance blending French culture and Olympic values that organizers assure will be spectacular.
Unlike the Covid-affected Tokyo Olympics, where the Games were delayed by a year and opened in an empty stadium, the Paris Olympics ceremony will occur before 300,000 spectators and an audience of VIPs and celebrities from around the world.
The lineup of performers is a closely guarded secret, but US pop star Lady Gaga and French-Malian singer Aya Nakamura—the most listened-to French-speaking singer in the world—are expected to be among them.
The ceremony will be held amid an unprecedented security operation.
Central Paris has been fortified with metal barriers along both banks of the Seine.
Police snipers will be positioned at high points along the route, with an assassination attempt on US presidential candidate Donald Trump on July 13 highlighting security concerns.
Instead of a traditional stadium march, about 6,800 athletes will parade on boats along the Seine for six kilometers. This will start the ceremony rather than mark its end, another break from tradition.
The parade starts at the Austerlitz Bridge beside the Jardin des Plantes and follows the course of the Seine from east to west, winding around two islands in the city center and passing under several bridges and gateways.
Athletes aboard the boats will glimpse several Olympic venues, including La Concorde Urban Park (3X3 basketball, breaking, BMX freestyle cycling, skateboarding), Invalides (archery, marathon finish, road cycling time trial start), and the Grand Palais (fencing, taekwondo).
The parade concludes at the Iena Bridge, which links the Eiffel Tower on the left bank of the Seine to the Trocadero district on the right bank. The ceremony’s finale will take place at the Trocadero, where French President Emmanuel Macron will deliver the opening remarks.
