Paris Set to Host Its First Olympics in a Century

“Games Wide Open” is the motto for this year’s Paris Olympics, which officially kick off on Friday with the opening ceremony.

This will be the first time in a century that Paris hosts the Summer Games, with most events set to take place in or around the city’s iconic landmarks.

The opening ceremony on Friday will feature boats transporting athletes and dignitaries down six kilometers of the River Seine, accommodating up to 300,000 spectators. While specific details of the ceremony remain under wraps, there has been speculation about performances by Celine Dion and Lady Gaga. Artistic director Thomas Jolly aims to “show France in all its diversity.”

This year’s Paris Games is notable for achieving gender parity, with 5,250 male and 5,250 female athletes competing.

As millions are expected to attend, Paris is making final preparations for what it hopes will be a historic event. French President Emmanuel Macron assured earlier this week that the country is “ready and will remain ready throughout the Games.”

However, some residents have raised concerns on social media about potential overcrowding, price inflation, and transportation challenges. On the eve of the opening ceremony, fires disrupted the French rail network, affecting the Eurostar service.

A significant security operation is in place, with up to 5,000 police, soldiers, and security guards on patrol. The Seine has been fenced off for the event, requiring residents to use QR codes for access to certain areas, which has led to criticism from local businesses. Authorities have promised that the barricades will be removed after the ceremony.

The Games are projected to cost around 9 billion euros (£7.6 billion), with organizers pledging to make this the greenest Olympics ever. Only two new, purpose-built venues—an aquatics center and an arena for badminton and rhythmic gymnastics—have been constructed. Other events will be held at iconic locations such as the Stade de France, Roland Garros, the Grand Palais, and Place de la Concorde.

One major concern leading up to the Games was the water quality of the Seine, which will host swimming events. After a century-long ban on swimming due to pollution, tests in June still showed high levels of E.coli. To address these concerns, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo swam in the river in July to demonstrate its safety. The water will be tested regularly before the events.

The Paris Games will feature only one new event: breaking, a dance style that originated in the Bronx. Men will also compete in artistic synchronized swimming for the first time, though no male competitors have been selected for Paris.

Several notable athletes will make their final Olympic appearances, including Britain’s two-time tennis gold medallist Andy Murray, gymnast Max Whitlock, and swimmer Adam Peaty, who returns after a mental health break. On the track, Katarina Johnson-Thompson aims to recover from her Tokyo 2021 setback, while Charlotte Dujardin will not compete following controversy over her treatment of a horse.

Simone Biles returns after her Tokyo struggles, and Stephen Curry will compete in basketball. American stars Sha’Carri Richardson and Noah Lyles, along with Jamaica’s Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, will also be key competitors.

Due to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russia and Belarus are banned from sending athletes to the Games. The 15 Russian and 17 Belarusian athletes competing in Paris will do so as Individual Neutral Athletes (AIN), with no national anthems or flags on display. They had to meet strict criteria set by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), including not actively supporting the war and passing vetting checks.

The decision to allow these athletes has faced criticism, but IOC President Thomas Bach defended it. Athletes in the Olympic Village earlier this week wore scarves with the message “give peace a chance,” with Bach emphasizing their role as “peace ambassadors.”

“You, the Olympic athletes, are the peace ambassadors of our time,” Bach said. “You will compete fiercely against each other, but you are living peacefully together under one roof, here in the Olympic Village. By respecting the same rules and each other, you send a powerful message of peace from Paris to the world.”