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Olympic Rings in Paris: More than 100 boats with international athlete delegations planned for the opening ceremony
Photo: Michel Euler / dpa
Due to the security situation and other organizational problems, significantly fewer spectators are expected to attend the opening ceremony of the Summer Olympics in Paris than originally announced.
In addition to the 100,000 paying spectators directly on the Seine, there are likely to be around 220,000 more people with free tickets in the upper bank area, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said on Wednesday on the public broadcaster France 2. "And then there are all those who live on the Seine and can have parties there in the evenings.«
In October 2022, the Interior Minister spoke in the Senate of 600,000 spectators, of which 500,000 were in the upper bank areas. And in May 2023 he confirmed the number as part of the planning for the security of the games.
Booksellers should vacate spaces
For the first time in their history, the Olympic Games will not open in a stadium, but in an opera-air ceremony on the Seine. More than 100 boats carrying the international athlete delegations will sail down the river on a six-kilometer route - past Parisian landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower. Heads of state and government from all over the world are also expected to attend the ceremony.
Security leaders faced the challenge of maintaining security with such a large crowd, but were uneasy about the risk of attacks. The authorities also had difficulty getting traditional booksellers along the Seine to temporarily vacate their stands.
The organizers had pushed for the largest possible number of spectators in order to realize their vision of a “People's Olympics”. According to their ideas, the games should be accessible to a maximum of French fans. However, Darmanin pointed out the “extremely high terrorist threat” on Wednesday.
bka/AFP