A historic boat parade down the River Seine launched the Paris Olympics with spectacular French flair Friday, as the City of Light welcomed the world's greatest athletes for a sporting extravaganza.
A show-stopping performance by Celine Dion, a flaming Olympic cauldron lifted into the night sky by hot-air balloon, and a dazzling Eiffel Tower light show brought the curtain down on a four-hour celebration of French culture, history and art.
Braving torrential rain, some 300 000 people lined the river banks to cheer on the armada carrying competitors past the city's iconic sights: the Eiffel Tower bearing the five Olympic rings, the Louvre and Notre Dame Cathedral.
Unbelievable 😍
— SuperSport 🏆 (@SuperSportTV) July 26, 2024
📺 Stream #Paris2024 live: https://t.co/rM90YyQxaw#CloserToYourChampions pic.twitter.com/7QGaH6ZVoE
💙💛🖤💚❤️
— The Olympic Games (@Olympics) July 26, 2024
The Olympic rings on the Eiffel Tower!#Paris2024 #OpeningCeremony pic.twitter.com/XNoJYAM2NF
The wildly ambitious display was the first time the Olympic opening ceremony has been staged outside the main stadium, making it the biggest-ever launch for the "Greatest Show on Earth".
But that gamble also made the ceremony hostage to the weather and spectators, VIPs, and athletes alike found themselves drenched or huddling in transparent ponchos.
Some spectators refused to let the downpour get them down. "I've got such an adrenaline rush. It's very exciting," said Selene Martinez, 42, who had travelled from Mexico for the ceremony.
But others were less stoic about the heavy rain on the parade, with some leaving the ceremony early to seek shelter.
"It's a great idea. The performances are awesome. I just wish it wasn't raining," said Pauline Brett, 69, who had come from Chicago with her family.
In the City of Love, the ceremony stressed togetherness and unity in a world that has suffered wars, massacres, and political upheaval since the Covid-delayed Tokyo Olympics.
Four jets from the French air force display team drew a large pink heart in the Paris sky to set the tone.
For just over a fortnight, organisers hope the superhuman performances of stars like gymnast Simone Biles, tennis champion Novak Djokovic or sprinter Noah Lyles will provide the world with much-needed distraction.
Beach volleyball at the Eiffel Tower, breakdancing in Place de la Concorde, equestrian sport at the Palace of Versailles: 100 years since Paris last staged the Olympics, the city will provide a stunning backdrop to the sport.
"I declare open the Games of Paris celebrating the 33rd Olympiad of the modern era," said President Emmanuel Macron.
Les Jeux de Paris 2024 sont ouverts ! pic.twitter.com/qu2FzvO8qE
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) July 26, 2024
In a symbol of the Games' message of gender parity, French track legend Marie-Jose Perec and three-time Olympic judo champion Teddy Riner lit the Olympic cauldron together.
TEDDY RINER, MARIE-JOSÉ PEREC, LA FLAMME OLYMPIQUE 🔥
— Paris 2024 (@Paris2024) July 26, 2024
3 légendes sur cette photo #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/CMqPsG3v4B
Dion closed the show from the first level of the Eiffel Tower, with her first public performance since revealing she was suffering from a rare illness.
🤩 @celinedion is spectacular and Paris sparkles with the Olympic spirit! ✨
— The Olympic Games (@Olympics) July 26, 2024
Paris 2024 is here!!! 🎉#Paris2024 #OpeningCeremony pic.twitter.com/es3KmnGD2k
Celine Dion stood on business with this performance 🤯
— SuperSport 🏆 (@SuperSportTV) July 26, 2024
You can just feel the emotion that she put into it 👏👏#Paris2024 | #CloserToYourChampions pic.twitter.com/WFGf05A3ye
'PUSH THE LIMITS'
Paris 2024 organiser Tony Estanguet had said the opening ceremony needed to "push the limits as far as possible", showing from the start France's ambition for the Games.
And from Moulin Rouge performers doing the cancan to a video showing dancers on the scaffolding of fire-damaged Notre Dame, it was a colourful celebration of French culture, history, and art.
— The Olympic Games (@Olympics) July 26, 2024
Led out by Greece through jets of water cascading from a bridge, accompanied by an accordion player, around 7 000 athletes cruised down a six-kilometre (four-mile) stretch of the Seine to the Eiffel Tower on 85 boats.
Lever de rideau 💦
— Paris 2024 (@Paris2024) July 26, 2024
La délégation grecque ouvre la parade des athlètes, comme le veut la tradition.
-
Curtain up 💦
The Greek delegation opens the athletes' parade, as per tradition dictates.
📸 Getty /Jared C. Tilton / Lars Baron#Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/3MN7mySe2A
#TeamSouthAfrica are ready for medals and memories at #Paris2024, with #TeamSA flag bearers holding the flag 🇿🇦 so high!#ForMyCountry #Olympics #TeamSA pic.twitter.com/UouiBo15Zh
— Team South Africa (@OfficialTeamRSA) July 26, 2024
🎉 #TeamSA at the #Paris2024 Opening Ceremony!#TeamSA #ForMyCountry #Olympics pic.twitter.com/sBMspkI6Du
— Team South Africa (@OfficialTeamRSA) July 26, 2024
The unprecedented ceremony sparked a colossal security operation in a city where memories of the November 2015 Islamist attacks are still raw.
Around 45 000 police and paramilitary officers were on duty to protect the ceremony, along with 10 000 soldiers and 22 000 private security guards.
Snipers, specialist frogmen, and AI-augmented cameras were deployed, with airspace closed and the area around the Seine virtually locked down.
Residents, businessowners grumbled about disruption and lost earnings but organisers hope to win them over when the sport starts.
'GENDER EQUALITY'
Sporting royalty mingled with celebrities and world leaders on and off the Seine, which will host triathlon and the swimming marathon after a historic clean-up to make it swimmable.
Lady Gaga added global musical star power, with Franco-Malian R&B star Aya Nakamura also performing, defying criticism from far-right politicians who suggested her appearance would "humiliate" France.
…Gaga oh la la!
— The Olympic Games (@Olympics) July 26, 2024
Excuse us as we pick our jaws off of the floor 🤯 @ladygaga just blew us away with a dazzling French cabaret performance at the #Paris2024 #OpeningCeremony! pic.twitter.com/oXBtU8wit3
The ceremony kicked off with a video of French football legend Zinedine Zidane, who took the torch on an offbeat journey through the Metro, and the Paris catacombs.
Basketball icon LeBron James and tennis player Coco Gauff carried the flag for Team USA, which has topped the medal table at every Olympics since Beijing in 2008.
True to its slogan "Games Wide Open", the Paris Olympics can boast gender equality for the first time ever – for Paris 1924, the last time the Olympics took place in the city, four per cent of athletes were women.
The IOC continues to strive for equality as some of the most influential female figures in history are recognised 🙌
— SuperSport 🏆 (@SuperSportTV) July 26, 2024
📺 Stream #Paris2024 live: https://t.co/rM90YyR504 #CloserToYourChampions pic.twitter.com/cW0cgU02kX
But the ceremony did not shy away from the chaos in the world – to the strains of John Lennon's "Imagine", the city was plunged into darkness in an invitation to reflect.
With extra security for Israeli athletes, plus a call from the Palestinian team for Israel to be excluded over the Gaza War, geopolitics has been an unwelcome intruder in the run-up.
Russian athletes have been banned from the Paris Olympics over the Ukraine invasion, and possible Russian destabilisation efforts sparked fears ahead of the Games.
'TWISTIES'
But with the Games now open, the stage is set for the 10 500 athletes to fulfil their dreams and turn in the performance of their lives.
Can US legend Biles bounce back from her "Twisties" heartbreak in Tokyo? Will Lyles establish himself as the rightful sprinting heir to Usain Bolt?
LeBron James on the basketball court, Carlos Alcaraz on the Roland Garros clay, France's swimming hope Leon Marchand in the pool: the stars are aligned for sporting brilliance.
Mesdames et messieurs, la Cérémonie d’ouverture de #Paris2024
— Paris 2024 (@Paris2024) July 26, 2024
Ladies and gentlemen, the Paris 2024 Opening Ceremony.
📸 Getty / Lionel Bonaventure pic.twitter.com/God7bQHvNd
The Paris 2024 Olympic cauldron is lit!
— The Olympic Games (@Olympics) July 26, 2024
Sorry, THE PARIS 2024 HOT-AIR BALLOON OLYMPIC CAULDRON IS LIT! 🤯 🔥 #Paris2024 #OpeningCeremony pic.twitter.com/CIuS4RzfHD