When organizers first revealed plans to carry the opening ceremony on the riverside within the metropolis heart somewhat than on the stadium as traditional, some had been shocked and questioned how they might handle such a large safety operation.
The Seine itself has been below scrutiny for its water cleanliness, and the logistics of transporting 1000’s of athletes alongside a six-kilometre stretch of the river with out rehearsals appeared bold.
However on Friday evening, backed by a safety operation involving tens of 1000’s of police, Paris pulled via in dazzling trend.
It was unusual at occasions – there was a second when Woman Gaga, surrounded by pink and black feathers, sang in French as the subsequent class of Bangladeshi athletes had been launched to their ship.
Plenty of the time, it is fairly loopy, and different occasions, it is emotional.
Ballet, cancan, opera, well-known artistic endeavors come to life, and even Little Troopers – often that includes masked torchbearers operating throughout rooftops and even ziplining, whereas a fleet of boats makes its approach from the Austerlitz Bridge to Jena bridge.
The boat carrying flag-waving athletes handed well-known landmarks such because the Louvre, Eiffel Tower, Grand Palais, Arc de Triomphe, and loved 12 artwork clips.
One section centered on the rebuilding of Notre Dame Cathedral, which was broken in a fireplace in 2019.
One other explores French historical past, with costumed singers performing music from Les Misérables and a headless Marie Antoinette choir accompanying French heavy steel band Godzilla.
French-Maritime R&B star Aya Nakamura is without doubt one of the most considered French-speaking artists and musical performers on this planet.
The ceremony ended on the Trocadero, the place the close by Eiffel Tower was lit, and the flame was delivered to sports activities superstars Zinedine Zidane and Rafael Nadal below the cautious association of masked torchbearers and mechanical horses. , Nadia Comaneci and Serena Williams.
The quartet carried the flame on a ship to the Louvre, the place it was carried by a sequence of French athletes and para-athletes previous and current – together with 100-year-old gold medal bike owner Charles Coste, and ultimately handed it over to Riina and Perec.
Simply while you thought the ceremony could not get any higher, the pair mild up the 30-meter sizzling air balloon, which now seems to be floating above the town.
However there was an much more magical second to return, when Dion, who carried out for the primary time since struggling a severe neurological sickness in December 2022, delivered a strong rendition of Edith Piaf’s “Hymn to Love.” ‘Hymne a l’amour), electrifying the Eiffel Tower viewers.
Keep tuned for extra content material.
