With 100 days to go until the opening of the Olympic Games in Paris, the facilities are ready and the main concern is security, especially for the opening ceremony on the Seine, which is a major challenge.
The Olympic flame was lit in Olympia on Tuesday and will travel through Greece before arriving in Marseilles on 8 May, where it will begin a journey across France until the Olympic opening ceremony on 26 July, even visiting the French Antilles or French Polynesia.
The ambition to have a historic opening ceremony, for the first time outside of a stadium and in such a symbolic location as the River Seine, has become a headache due to the necessary security measures.
On Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron reaffirmed the intention to maintain the original idea, but also fueled speculation by suggesting that in case of a significant threat, there are “plans B and C.”
This is the first time that the hypothesis, previously excluded by the authorities, of the event taking place inside the Stade de France in Saint-Denis (north of Paris), has been admitted.
The international context adds tension to this issue: the conflict continues between Russia and Ukraine, while the situation in the Middle East has worsened with Iran’s recent attack on Israel.
In France, the Vigipirate Plan recently raised the level to “Attack Emergency” after an attack in Moscow on March 22nd claimed by the Islamic State. “Clearly, the context is tense,” confirmed a security source to AFP.
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Although Minister of Sports Amélie Oudéa-Castera explained that no specific threats towards the Games had been detected so far. According to Tony Estanguet, president of the Organizing Committee, speaking to RFI on Tuesday, the Seine opening remains the “main plan”and is “very likely” to be the ceremony’s venue.
Will transport be able to cope with the influx of spectators during the Summer Olympics in Paris, despite the efforts of the authorities? The Paris metro shows no significant signs of improvement, and negotiations are underway over compensation for the workers mobilised by the public companies responsible, SNCF (state-owned) and RATP (regional). “If things go wrong [during the Olympics], France’s image will be damaged,” warned Jean Castex, former French prime minister and current head of RATP.
The authorities are also concerned about the threat of strikes by some unions. As for Paris’s Roissy and Orly airports, which will be the main entry points for foreign delegations to France, their managers are preparing to receive more than 60,000 accredited people from 18 July, the official opening date of the Olympic Village.
The capital began to take on an Olympic atmosphere. The first Olympic facilities on the Place de la Concorde or the Champ de Mars are beginning to appear in the city’s urban landscape, creating a buzz of excitement.
Between February and April, the Olympic Village,the Media Village, the Marseille Marina and the Saint-Denis Aquatic Centre were inaugurated. Since 29 February, the organisers have been preparing the 3,000 apartments in the Olympic Village, which will house 14,500 people, including athletes and delegation members.
While the participation of Russian athletes is still subject to the current situation,they are currently allowed to compete under a neutral flag and under strict conditions. They will not be present at the Opening Ceremony. Belarusians are also banned from the parade along the Seine.
The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo,said on a recent trip to Kiev that Russians were ‘not welcome’ in her city. According to Macron, Russia may try to disrupt the Paris Olympics, an accusation denied by Moscow. Cyber security is another major concern for the authorities.
