Where will the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris take place on July 26? Since yesterday and after Emmanuel Macron’s interview with BFMTV, doubts have arisen. The President of the Republic actually announced that, due to the terrorist threat, the celebrations could leave the Seine and go to the Trocadero or the Stade de France. An announcement that will come 100 days before the start of the Games and could disrupt preparations that began months ago.
The day after these statements, Sports Minister Amelie Oudea-Castera was questioned about this in Olympia (Greece), where she was present at the lighting of the Olympic flame. “We are preparing to hold the Games with the most impeccable organization. The context is complex. There is this threat, this risk, and we must be aware of all this,” she pointed out in front of the microphones, assuring that the ceremony on the Seine remained “the central plan.”
“The first requirement is, above all, not to give up the desire to hold the opening ceremony on the Seine,” she assures. This morning, organizing committee president Tony Estangue said on RFI that this is “really the main and very likely plan.”
“Important meeting” next week
But the minister reiterates that the security context must not be neglected under any circumstances. “These challenges require us to have vision and responsibility. The head of state asked us to work out backup scenarios while monitoring the development of the threat,” continues Amelie Udea-Castera, who assures that the safety of spectators is “the highest priority.”
In this case, although the conflict in the Middle East this weekend was a turning point, is the dream of a ceremony throughout Paris still reasonable from a security perspective? “We have a responsibility to consider all circumstances and be able to adjust our ceremony depending on the context. These answers may have different gradations and different scenarios,” the minister replies. In the event of leaving for the Trocadero, Amelie Udea-Castera assures that it will always remain “a ceremony with an artistic dimension,” but “in a different configuration.”
If the date is not yet known, Amelie Udea-Castera announces that an “important meeting” is to take place “next week” in front of the “meeting places.” “Everything is done in accordance with Minister of the Interior and Prefect of Police and with continued gratitude [de la menace] French intelligence services,” explains the minister. “I am working on plan A, I only know plan A, you must be confident in the work done,” insisted the mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, into the microphone of BFMTV and RMC.
Source: Le Parisien
I have worked in the news industry for over 10 years. I have a keen interest in sports and have written for many different publications. I am currently working as an author at 24 News Recorder. I cover mostly sports news but also write about other topics such as current affairs and politics. I have a strong interest in social media and how it can be used to engage with audiences.
