Eeshna Dashottar, Pune
As the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics is around the corner, the government of France on Tuesday announced changes in their plans of hosting 6,00,000 spectators for the sporting event’s opening ceremonies in light of the security concerns at hand. This modification is happening due to the issues of security and crowd control along the River Seine where the opening ceremonies would be organised.
The request to lower the crowd size was made by French President Emmanuel Macron himself, as stated by an official in French intelligence services (mentioned by Politico). President Macaron specifically requested the reduction owing to the event taking place in a public space rather than a stadium. Security concerns are mainly leading to such urgent arrangements, with the authorities saying the “main threat is Islamic terrorism”. The French interior ministry has identified groups that pose a potential security threat, including the Islamic State and al-Qaida.
The 3.7-mile stretch from east of Paris to the Trocadéro will now be viewed by around 3,00,000 viewers, almost half of the initial numbers planned, on July 26, 2024.
The organisers of the Paris 2024 Olympics announced their grand plans two years ago regarding the opening ceremonies. They planned to host 6,00,000 people for the biggest opening ceremony in history – with a 6km long parade of athletes in boats along the River Seine. The athletes on boats will be crossing some of Paris’ iconic locations like Notre Dame, the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower.
However, with the recent developments, the Paris police prefecture has announced the reduction of crowd size to half. Now, 1,04,000 spectators will be witnessing the boat parade of the flag-bearing athletes at the waterfront and 2,22,000 others will view the parade from other bridges and streets. The new number of spectators was announced by French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin in a Parliament hearing on Tuesday. Tickets for the opening ceremony range from seating at €90 to as high as €2,700. No free access is allowed for the ceremony, with free entries restricted to invitation-only cases. A security perimeter will encircle the center of Paris during the ceremonies and access to the region, even for tourists, will be shut for the days leading up to the event. Access to ticket holders and people living and working in these arrears will be permitted with the help of QR codes for entry.