Olympics 2024: More than another opening ceremony **** fdfdfdfdfdfdfdfdfd ****

"I declare the Paris Olympic Game

"I declare the Paris Olympic Games open in honor of the 33rd Olympiad of the modern era”. French President Emmanuel Macron's words to officially kick off the Paris 2024 Games were far from the most impressive moment of the opening ceremony.

The contrast with previous Olympic opening ceremonies could not have been greater. At the last summer Olympics in Tokyo, only 1,000 guests were admitted - it was the height of the pandemic. At the Paris opening, there were 320,000 spectators who were not bothered in any way by the rain that did not stop pouring over the French capital.

The program, developed by the team of French actor and theater director Thomas Joly, began with fireworks in the French national colors - blue, white and red - on the Austerlitz bridge. The parade of boats on the Seine began from there. The teams from a total of 206 national Olympic committees and the refugee team from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) traveled six kilometers along the Seine River with 85 ships and boats.

The boat parade was accompanied by a variety of music and dance performances. Lady Gaga provided the first really big show: in the style of a French revue, the US superstar sang the classic chanson "Mon truc en plumes" in the shadow of Notre Dame Cathedral.

After that, a variety of information about French culture and lifestyle was presented in an extremely creative way. From the cancan through the opera "Carmen" and the musical "Les Miserables" to heavy metal. From a fashion show on a bridge to images of famous works of art standing in the Seine on the banks of the river, to performances of breakdancing, the only new sport at the Paris Games.

After the athletes' boat parade, the Olympic flag was carried down the Seine by a rider on a metal stallion to the Trocadero, where the officials were stationed.

The president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, called for Olympic unity. "In a world torn apart by war and conflict, it is due to this solidarity that we can come together tonight and unite the athletes from the territories of all 206 National Olympic Committees and the members of the IOC refugee team,", Bach said.

The masked torchbearer, who had been walking around Paris throughout the ceremony, finally passed the Olympic flame to former French footballer Zinedine Zidane. He, in turn, handed it over to Spanish tennis player Rafael Nadal, for whom these are the last Olympics. Then a number of international and French sports stars carried the Olympic flame. They included Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal, competing in his final Olympics in Paris, former tennis star Serena Williams and sprinting legend Carl Lewis of the US, as well as former Romanian world-class gymnast Nadia Comaneci and former French NBA star Toni Parker.

In the final, two three-time Olympic champions from France lit the Olympic flame on the grounds of the Louvre: former runner Marie-José Perec and former judoka Teddy Riner. The fire was raised into the Parisian night sky in a balloon.

The emotional finale was given by Canadian singer Celine Dion. She suffers from the rare autoimmune disease stiff man syndrome and has not performed in concert since 2020. Now she sang the chanson "Hymne à l'amour" of the legendary Edith Piaf in the lights of the Eiffel Tower. A fitting end to an inspiring opening ceremony.

Author: Stefan Nestler