Bonjour! Paris Stages Unique Opening Ceremony
By Vikneswaran Raman
PARIS, July 27 (Bernama) -- Olympians, Assemble!
As the approximately 10,500 athletes gather to do battle for the next 17 days, France put on a spectacular and unique opening ceremony that began with a floating parade along the River Seine and ended at the iconic Eiffel Tower, with the cauldron - a flaming hot air balloon - being lit in the Gardens of the Tuileries and rising majestically into the air.
For the first time in the history of the Games, the opening ceremony was held outside the confines of a stadium, in the heart of Paris, watched by some 300,000 people from the stands, bridges, riverbanks and their homes as the 205 nations took part in the athletes parade via 85 boats of various sizes along the six-kilometre stretch of the Seine.
This is in contrast to the opening of the 2020 Tokyo Games, held in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, when fewer than 1,000 dignitaries attended the ceremony at the Olympic Stadium.
American star Lady Gaga, French-Malian singer-songwriter Aya Nakamura and superstar Celine Dion were among the renowned artistes to perform from different scenic locations in the four-hour long ceremony.
This is the first time Celine Dion has performed live since she was diagnosed with stiff person syndrome in 2022. It is a rare and complex neurological disorder that causes progressive stiffness and painful spasms.
Other big names who featured in the opening ceremony included French football legend Zinadine Zidane; Spanish tennis ace Rafael Nadal; American tennis legend Serena Williams; former American sprinter Carl Lewis, winner of nine Olympic gold medals, and former gymnast Nadia Comaneci, a five-time Olympic gold medallist.
The opening ceremony’s artistic director, Thomas Jolly, depicted the rich French historical and cultural achievements during the entire ceremony held along the parade, with a masked torchbearer running across the rooftops of prominent monuments and bridges as heavy rain fell on the boat parade on the River Seine.
Despite the rain, the event began with aplomb when former Zidane received the Games torch from French-Moroccan actor-comedianJamel Debbouze at the Stade de France and dashed out to the banks of the Seine.
The Parade of Nations began with Greece, home of the ancient Olympic Games, leading the contingents out on boats in alphabetical order, while the hosts France concluded the floating parade for the grand finale at the Trocadero.
The Malaysian contingent of six athletes and four officials - all smartly and resplendently clad in olive green with golden motifs coloured Baju Melayu Teluk Belanga paired with songkok and sampin (men), and Baju Kurung (women) named ‘The Malaya’ - was 112th in the order, and cruised in boat number 45 together with Malawi and Maldives.
Flagbearers Bertrand Rhodict Lises (diving) and Nur Shazrin Mohamad Latif (sailing) led compatriots Nur Dhabitah Sabri (diving), Khairulnizam Mohd Afendy (sailing), Ashley Lau (golf) and Tan Rouxin (swimming) on the barge, with chef de mission Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin, his deputy Datuk Nicol David, chief medical officer Dr Jasmiza Khuzairi Jasme and safeguarding officer Ang Li Peng also on board.
After the 205 delegations, including the Refugee Olympic Team, arrived at the Trocadero, the esplanade near the Eiffel Tower, where the athletes had gathered, witnessed the spectacular entrance of the masked torchbearer, astride a white horse.
After the Olympic flag was raised, the ceremony continued with speeches from the Paris 2024 Organising Committee president Tony Estanguet and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach.
France's President Emmanuel Macron then officially declared the Paris 2024 Olympic Games open.
Paris is hosting the Olympics for the third time after the 1900 and 1924 editions, equalling London’s (1908, 1948, and 2012) record of hosting the Games in the same city thrice.
After the athletes, officials and coaches had taken the Olympic oath, the ceremony peaked when three-time French judo champion Teddy Riner and French three-time gold-winning sprinter Marie-Jose Perec lit the cauldron - a 30m high and 22m in diameter hot-air balloon - in spectacular fashion.
The cauldron design is a tribute to the first flight on a hydrogen-filled gas balloon from the Gardens of the Tuileries in Paris in December 1783 by two French inventors - Jacques Alexander Charles and Nicholas Louis Robert.
The dazzling ceremony ended with a breathtaking laser display that lit up the Eiffel Tower and the Paris night skies.
The Games will begin in earnest today, with around 10,500 athletes set to vie for glory in 329 events across 32 sports until Aug 11.
Other Malaysians competing in the Paris Games are archers Ariana Nur Dania Mohamad Zairi, Syaqiera Mashayikh and Nurul Azreena Mohd Fazil; shuttlers Lee Zii Jia, Goh Jin Wei, Aaron Chia, Soh Wooi Yik, Pearly Tan, M. Thinaah, Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei; diver Nur Dhabitah Sabri; swimmer Khiew Hoe Yan;
Road cyclists Nur Aisyah Mohamad Zubir (road), track cyclists Mohd Azizulhasni Awang, Muhammad Shah Firdaus Sahrom and Nurul Izzah Izzati Mohd Asri; golfers Gavin Green and Ashley Lau; shooter Johnathan Wong Guanjie; weightlifter Muhammad Aniq Kasdan; and sprinter Muhammad Azeem Fahmi.
Malaysia, who made their debut at the 1956 Melbourne Games, have won eight silvers and five bronzes, with badminton contributing the lion’s share of six silver and three bronze medals.
Los Angeles, in the United States, will host the 2028 edition of the Games.
-- BERNAMA
