PARIS (AP) — The 2024 Paris Olympics opening ceremony went off with only minor hitches after a rough start to the Summer Games. Following suspected acts of sabotage targeting France’s flagship high-speed rail network, a soggy but celebratory parade down the Seine River brought an official start to the Olympics.
Why Celine Dion’s comeback amid stiff person syndrome is so special
She received a standing ovation at this year’s Grammys when she made a surprise appearance to present the final award. That was the beginning of a comeback, completed tonight.
Celine Dion’s Olympics performance marks her return to performing after years. She was diagnosed with stiff person syndrome in late 2022, causing her to postpone a tour.
The rare neurological disorder causes rigid muscles and painful muscle spasms, which were affecting Dion’s ability to walk and sing. In June, at the premiere of the documentary “I Am: Celine Dion” she told The Associated Press that returning required therapy, “physically, mentally, emotionally, vocally.”
“So that’s why it takes a while. But absolutely why we’re doing this because I’m already a little bit back,” she said.
The 2024 Summer Olympics
- Snoop Dogg, NBC’s new voice of the people
- The cultural references in the Olympic Opening Ceremonies, explained
- Tests show Seine water quality was substandard when Paris mayor took a dip
- Olympic cauldron is lit by French gold medalists Teddy Riner, Marie-José Pérec
- Arson attacks paralyze French high-speed rail network hours before Olympics
- Live updates, Friday, July 26
- 2024 Paris Olympics: How to watch every event and Friday’s opening ceremony
- Here are the WA athletes to watch in the Paris Summer Olympics
- Track how WA athletes are doing at Paris Olympics
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The Olympic cauldron takes flight from the site of another famous balloon ride
The identity of the person who would light the Olympic cauldron (spoiler alert: Marie-José Pérec and Teddy Riner) was up in the air … and so, it turns out, was the cauldron itself: a ring of fire carried by a hot-air balloon.
The ring is 7 meters in diameter (about 23 feet), and the balloon is 30 meters (about 100 feet) tall and 22 meters (about 72 feet) wide.
Instead of the usual ground-bound cauldron used at most Summer and Winter Games, the special edition for the Paris Olympics is intended as a tribute to the first ride taken in a hydrogen-filled gas balloon — made in 1783 by two of that balloon’s French inventors. They departed back then from the Tuileries Garden, which is near the Louvre Museum in the heart of Paris and where the Olympic cauldron was lit before floating into the sky.
Created by French designer Mathieu Lehanneur, the cauldron is meant as a symbol of liberty – an element in the national slogan of “Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité.”
Celine Dion serenades Paris from the Eiffel Tower
Celine Dion has arrived! The French-Canadian pop star followed the lighting of the Olympic cauldron by performing from the Eiffel Tower.
The Olympic cauldron is lit — and floats into the Paris sky via air balloon
Charles Coste, the oldest French Olympic champion at 100, took the Olympic flame from his wheelchair, then passed it on to French judo great Teddy Riner and sprinter Marie-José Pérec. They lit a cauldron attached to a giant balloon, which then floated into the Paris night.
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Olympic torch passes between French athletes on final leg
Mauresmo and Parker handed off to a trio of French para-athletes, including Nantenin Keïta, who is the daughter of famed Mali musician Salif Keita. A series of handoffs followed to more than a dozen French athletes.
Amelie Mauresmo, Tony Parker bring torch to the Louvre
When the boat reached land, Nadal used the torch his group had to light one held by former tennis player Amelie Mauresmo. She won two Grand Slam titles, reached No. 1 in the rankings and coached Andy Murray; she is now the tournament director for the French Open.
Mauresmo handed her torch to former NBA player Tony Parker, and they began jogging together under a falling rain near the Louvre.
The Olympic torch finishes its journey along the Seine
People still lining the Alexander III Bridge cheered with joy as the Olympic torch passed by on the boat.
Carl Lewis, Nadia Comaneci help finish Olympic torch relay
Other athletes on the boat involved in the torch relay were retired track star Carl Lewis, an American with nine Olympic gold medals, and retired gymnast Nadia Comaneci, a Romanian with five golds.
Zidane, Nadal, Serena help with final torch relay
The final torch relay late in the ceremony involved retired soccer star Zinedine Zidane, who led France to the 1998 World Cup title, and several non-French stars.
- Zidane handed off to Rafael Nadal, a Spaniard who won 14 of his 22 Grand Slam tennis titles at the French Open. Then, on a boat along the Seine, Nadal gave the torch to Serena Williams, an American who collected three of her 23 major singles championships in Paris.
Eiffel Tower light show wows crowd
After staring in awe at the Eiffel Tower light show, crowds once again jumping up and down and bopping to electronic music.
Lights from the monument can be seen as rays through the rain over the Seine, leaving the cloudy sky glowing.
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And now, it’s officially official: Macron declares the Paris Games open
French President Emmanuel Macron has said the words that make it official: He has declared the Paris Games open.
Macron did so just before French flag bearers Florent Manaudou and Mélina Robert-Michon took the Olympic Oath on behalf of all the athletes taking part in the Olympic Games. The oath represents how athletes understand they must respect the rules of fair play.
The Olympic flag was raised upside down
The five-ring Olympic flag was raised upside down at Trocadero across the way from the Eiffel Tower.
