The opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics on July 26, 2024, will be held on the River Seine, organisers announced on Monday, breaking the long-held Summer Games tradition of a stadium procession of athletes and officials.
Thousands of Olympic athletes on boats cruising along the River Seine toward the sun setting like a giant gold medal behind the Eiffel Tower.
The 2024 Paris Games opening ceremony vision was unveiled on Monday as an event organizer’s hope will be unique in Olympic history and free for hundreds of thousands to watch on the riverside.
Rethinking the ceremony that announces an Olympics to the world by taking it outside the traditional stadium setting was long hinted at by Paris officials.
Tony Estanguet, Paris 2024 Organising Committee President said, “This river will be the waterway where the athlete will parade. 160 boats will welcome the 206 athletes’ delegations – there will be 10.500 athletes who will have the chance to parade on the Seine. We can see that the quays are turned into steps with lower quays where people can save their sits to watch this ceremony. But the real innovation is that many hundred thousand persons will be able for the first time to watch the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games for free. And it is really important that we were able to change the model.”
Details revealed for the July 26th 2024 show help explain a promise to use the City of Light, its culture and people as essential actors in the Olympics.
For starters, the water-borne opening ceremony will innovate by having the parade of athletes from more than 200 teams begin the evening instead of end it.
It will also be free to view for most of the expected 600,000 spectators lining the six-kilometer (four-mile) route.
Tony Estanguet said, “For six kilometers, the athletes will open this opening ceremony and cross the most beautiful patrimony of our city, our country. As more than 1 billion of persons will watch the opening ceremony, it will offer them some incredible emotions, passing by all those monuments that make us proud.”
