Olympic Games 2024. Opening ceremony: the bad news accumulates, live

< img src="https://img-4.linternaute.com/RTdiCysC00df0262GoHpgxLkbK0=/540x/smart/197806105f8146118fee7b1aad1fd13a/ccmcms-linternaute/62898580.jpg" alt="JO 2024. Opening ceremony: bad news piles up, live" width="540" height=369>“2024 Olympics. Opening ceremony: bad news is piling up, live”

&A few hours before the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, bad news is piling up for the organizing committee.

The essentials

• The big day for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games with the grand and majestic opening ceremony scheduled for from 7:30 p.m. on the Seine.
• &A few hours before the ceremony, the bad news is piling up. First of all, the weather is very capricious in the Paris region and could complicate the ceremony. The controversies surrounding the dancers and the working conditions not respected are also in the headlines. While the "free" places cause some constraints. Some people have given up on the idea of ​​going to the ceremony between the waiting time, the standing position and accessibility that is not very obvious for pregnant women and disabled people. And what about transport, saturated and with closed metro lines.
• Follow the latest news on the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Live

13:20 – Bad forecasts confirmed

“The forecasts have completely reversed since yesterday: models now predict a 70 to 80% chance of rain during the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games,” Cyrille Duchesne, head of the forecast service at La Chaîne Météo, told Agence France-Presse. Let us recall that less than twenty-four hours ago, forecasters were rather optimistic and anticipated “calm” weather, although cloudy, with only a “small risk” of precipitation.

13:00 – No pressure for Florent Manaudou

“There is no added pressure, I don't feel it, I like it. I find it enjoyable because I think I am happy enough in my life to be able to play this role for two weeks. I feel like it takes the pressure off me,” he adds. “It felt good to have been “elected and recognized by the athletes. It's like I've checked one more thing” launched the swimmer who will carry the flag of the Blues.

Discover the images of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games

12:40 – Why Greece parades first during the ceremony ?

Do you know since when and why Greece inaugurates this parade ? It was in Amsterdam in 1928 that the tradition of having the Greek delegation parade first was introduced, due to the Greek and ancient origin of the Olympic Games. Because as a reminder, the Olympic Games were created in ancient Greece, at Olympia, in 776 B.C. The alphabetical order of nations is also always preferred, but it also depends on the language of the host country.

12:20 – The last bearer warned only today

According to Tony Estanguet, the person who will occupy this role does not know yet either! This morning, on France Inter, the president of Paris 2024 indicated: “I plan to notify the last torchbearer today to try to maintain confidentiality and a bit of surprise”. Before adding, “so he or she doesn't know”

12:00 – What is the largest and smallest delegation ?

The largest delegation will be that of the United States 592 athletes at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics. The smallest, with only one member, will be Belize, Liechtenstein, Nauru (an island in Oceania located in Micronesia) and Somalia.

11:40 – Several French athletes will not be present

Between competition and pleasure, you sometimes have to choose. If Florent Manaudou will be present, he will be the only one from the French swimming delegation to be there. Mélanie Hénique wanted to participate but the officials did not want to make a special case as indicated by Le Parisien. Basketball will also be absent. We play the next day (Saturday) at 5 p.m., recalls general manager Boris Diaw. If we were in Paris, if we had played two days later, it would have been possible, but not here.” Rugby 7s, the handball teams will also not be present.

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11:20 – Who will be the last ball carrier ?

This is THE question of the opening ceremony. Who will be the last bearer of the Olympic flame and light the cauldron ? Several names are circulating, one insistently, that of Marie José Perec. The triple Olympic champion is a legend of Olympism and would fully deserve this honor. The name of Zinedine Zidane also comes up insistently as does a surprise name, that of Jean Dujardin because of the presence of a certain Zorro to light this flame (the actor will play in the series).

11:00 – Dancers in danger on the roofs ?

While the rain can pose some problems for the dancers of the opening ceremony, some associations have alerted public services about the presence of asbestos on the roofs of Paris, demanding a right of withdrawal for the artists. After the controversies on working conditions and salaries, this new point is delicate to manage for the organizers.

10:40 – Other stars as standard-bearers

Several stars are expected with their national flag. For the United States, the legend LeBron James and the tennis player Coco Gauff will carry the American flag. First, it is the Greek and other NBA star, Giannis Antetokoumpo who will inaugurate the parade of athletes. The Italian Olympic champion and eccentric Gianmarco Tamberi will also be at honor.

10:20 – Florent Manaudou and Melina Robert Michon at the forefront

With this rain and this spectacle, we are almost forgetting the athletes. Tonight, at the end of the athletes' parade, Florent Manaudou and Melina Robert Michon will proudly carry the French flag on the Seine. The two athletes, elected a few days ago, expect live a unique moment.

10:00 – The rain won't spoil anything for Hidalgo

“For years, we have been saying no, on July 26th it can only be sunny. “We will make do,” she said, acknowledging however that the rain “can disrupt the ceremony a little in the sense that there are some scenes planned for slightly drier weather. There will be extraordinary lights, çit won't spoil the ceremony", she nevertheless assured.

09:42 – SNCF disrupted a few hours before the ceremony

SNCF was the victim of “several simultaneous malicious acts affecting the TGV Atlantique, Nord and Est lines” during the night from Thursday to Friday. “Deliberate fires were set to damage our facilities,” the railway company explained in a press release, which assured that teams “are already on site to carry out diagnostics and begin repairs.” But the SNCF also warns that the disruptions, numerous on the morning of Friday July 26, should “last at least the entire weekend”, the time to carry out the necessary repairs. “We will “assess the impacts today for travelers and athletes, but also the impacts for this weekend which concern the smooth transport of all delegations to the competition sites.” “Playing against the Games is playing against France, against your camp, against your country” explained the Minister of Sports.

09:40 – An adaptation due to the rain ?

“It is a hazard to which our responsibility is to know how to adapt” launched the Minister of Sports Am&eacutelie Oud&eacutea Castera on BFM TV.'' Obviously, the team around Thomas Jolly [the man chosen two years ago to organize the ceremonies for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games] has designed different scenarios. That won't spoil the party in any way. It's an open-air ceremony.

09:20 – Céline Dion, Lady Gaga, we take stock

The presence of Céline Dion for the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games is hardly in doubt. Arriving Tuesday morning in Paris, the mega star, who has not sung since 2020, will perform a song by Édith Piaf, no doubt, The Hymn to Love. Aya Nakamura will tackle the repertoire of Charles Aznavour, accompanied by the Republican Guard. Lady Gaga will also be present.

09:00 – “We want people to say Wow”

On RTL, Tony Estanguet gave his opinion a few hours before the big day. “We already wanted on the site a completely new format so that people say to themselves “Wow, that, we've never seen that before. We really wanted to combine sport and culture, added Mr. Estanguet, specifying that 2,000 artists will perform tonight. Usually, at the ceremonies, there is a first part that is rather artistic, a second part that is rather around the athletes. But here, we really wanted that, from the beginning, the athletes are present and that the artistic part is integrated into the presentation of the athletes who will follow one another throughout the evening.”

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