Olympics
Formidable! Paris opens new Olympics era with unprecedented Inauguration
Paris ushered in the 2024 Games Friday with a spectacular opening ceremony on the banks of the Seine, which was eventually flooded by rain. The event was an eclectic mix of art, sport and culture, creating an unforgettable spectacle that overcame unprecedented logistical and security challenges.
The Opening Ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games, between the Pont d’Austerlitz and the Pont d’Iéna, had a unique format, with the French state betting heavily on the organisers and the IOC to promote gender equality and start these Olympics with a bang. A total of twenty artists took to the stage for a magnificent show lasting over four hours.
The Paris 2024 Opening Ceremony was the first in Olympic history to be held outside a stadium, with the River Seine becoming an unprecedented stage for the global sporting event watched by more than a billion people. The long-awaited moment came after a hectic day that began with rain and sabotage on the French rail network.
The fast-moving and multi-location ceremony masterminded by acclaimed French theatre director Thomas Jolly was aimed at impressing the global TV audience as much as those who braved the weather and intense security to watch live. The first-ever opening ceremony held outside a stadium — on the River Seine — had to battle pouring rain that cast a pallid gloom over the City of Light.
The 12 different phases of the ceremony told the story of a country rich in its “diversity”, “inclusive”, “not one France but several Frances”, and celebrating “the whole world united”. Jolly was backed by a writing team including famed novelist Leila Slimani and screenwriter Fanny Herrero, who penned the smash-hit casting agency comedy “Dix pour cent” (“Call My Agent).
The Olympic rings installed on the Eiffel Tower since June to celebrate the upcoming Olympic Games were removed from the Parisian monument early on Friday morning, as confirmed by an AFP photographer. But the Paris City Hall intends to replace them with a more permanent structure until 2028.
The five-coloured rings, measuring 29 metres in length and 15 metres in height, were placed between the first and second levels of the iconic iron structure on 7 June.
According to Inside the Games publication, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo wants the Olympic symbol to continue decorating the monument until the 2028 Games in Los Angeles.
But the descendants of the tower’s creator, Gustave Eiffel are opposing the move. They are insisting that the Olympic rings are aesthetically in conflict with the concept and design of the Tower.
The 30-tonne rings initially installed on the Eiffel Tower were also not designed to withstand winter weather conditions.
Olympics
Despite Egypt winning 3 medals at Paris Olympics, President Al-Sisi orders sports system overhaul
Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi ordered a comprehensive evaluation of sports federations that participatedat the Paris Olympic Games, following a mission report submitted by the country’s sports minister.
The mandate includes a thorough expenditure check and a performance review to better highlight areas of improvement and fund allocation in future Games.
Additionally, the president plans to take necessary measures against federations —such as limiting funds— that had negative results in the Paris Games.
Egypt’s participation in sports where it lacks a competitive advantage will also be limited, as the president aims to direct resources to promising athletes to ensure optimal results. The president also aims to reduce administrative and technical staff within Olympic delegations and task relevant ministries with preparing future Olympic athletes.
Al-Sisi’s Olympic overhaul is to be presented to the cabinet for approval and urged the government to prioritise amending the sports law for the House of Representatives for review.
Egypt took home a total of three medals in the Summer Games. Ahmed El-Gendy triumphed in modern pentathlon, Sara Samir claimed the silver in weightlifting, and 21-year-old fencer Mohamed El-Sayed earned the bronze.
-Insidethegames
Paris 2024 sold a record 12 million tickets for the Olympics and Paralympics, beating the Games record previously set by London 2012, organisers said on Sunday.
Some 9.5 million tickets were sold for the Olympics and 2.5 million for the Paralympics, which end on Sunday.
In 2012, London organisers set the record for the Paralympics with 2.7 million tickets sold but only 8.2 million were sold for the Olympics.
-Reuters
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