Paris transformed into Olympic Stadium
PARIS — The French capital is transformed into an Olympic stadium, with beach volleyball taking place beneath the Eiffel Tower and BMX freestyle, skateboarding and 3×3 basketball taking place at Place de la Concorde.
The famous square in front of the L’Hotel de Ville has been transformed into a place where the public can experience Olympic and Paralympic sports such as basketball and wheelchair tennis, and fathers can wrestle their children on the Olympic mats.
Camille and Jean-François Goult are Parisians who, unlike some, chose to remain in the capital and endure the crowds and traffic jams during the match.
“It’s so amazing to have the Olympics in our city,” Camille, 50, told NBC News today.
“You get the chance to meet people from all over the world,” added Jean-Francois, 52.
When asked whether the U.S. or French team would win more medals, Jean-Francois smiled and said, probably the U.S.
The first event of Paris 2024
Paris and the teams gathered there are still preparing for kick-off on Wednesday, and you can stream every minute of the match on Peacock once kick-off begins.
The matches on Wednesday are men’s soccer and men’s rugby sevens. For the uninitiated, rugby sevens is similar to regular rugby union (one of the sports that soccer is based on), except that instead of regular 15-a-side teams playing 40-minute halves, seven-a-side teams play 7-minute halves.
In soccer, one of the teams to watch on Wednesday will surely be Argentina. Fresh off their Copa America victory, their young players (most Olympic soccer players must be under 23) include Manchester City’s Julián Alvarez and Inter Miami’s Federico Redondo. Argentina opens its Olympic campaign at 9 a.m. ET against Morocco, while Spain plays Uzbekistan.
The U.S. will face France at 3 p.m. ET, and the USMNT’s overage players include Nashville’s Walker Zimmerman, Cincinnati’s Myles Robinson and Colorado Rapids’ Djordje Mihajlovic.
Is the Seine clean enough for the Olympics? The Mayor of Paris took a bath.
Under blue skies and bright sunshine, curious Parisians gathered on the right bank of the Seine to watch the French capital’s mayor jump into the river.
After months of anticipation, Anne Hidalgo was smiling, fulfilling her promise to show the river was clean enough to host open swimming events during the 2024 Olympics and host the opening ceremony on the river, which was then just nine days away.
She donned a wetsuit and goggles and dove into the river near Paris’ imposing City Hall, her office and Notre Dame Cathedral.
Hidalgo’s swim is part of a wider effort to highlight improved river cleanliness ahead of the Olympics, which are due to open on Friday with a lavish open-air ceremony featuring a parade of athletes on boats on the Seine.Read the full story here.
Be the eyes in the sky keeping the Paris Olympics safe
They’ll have the best seats in the house at the Paris Olympics this summer, but they won’t be able to enjoy the sports.
Major John and Colonel Dry will be the eyes in the sky over one of the most difficult and rigorous security operations in Olympic history.
NBC News received an exclusive invitation to board a military police helicopter during a week in March for a swoop from the sprawling Palace of Versailles, once a royal residence and now the venue for equestrian events, to the La Defense business district, then along the Seine, site of the opening ceremony, to the Olympic Stadium, the Stade de France and the colorful townhouses of the Olympic Village on the outskirts.
Read the full story here.
See how Paris has evolved from the 1924 Summer Olympics to today
In the summer of 1924, more than 600,000 spectators descended on Paris for the Olympic Games. For the first time, the events were broadcast on radio, allowing listeners around the world to experience firsthand the performances of the “Flying Finns” and other top athletes. British stars Harold Abrahams and Eric Liddell’s track victories served as the inspiration for the 1981 Oscar-winning film Chariots of Fire and Vangelis’ uplifting electronic theme.
In the century since then, Paris and the surrounding city have been completely transformed by political turmoil, technological revolution and demographic shifts. But when the City of Light hosts its third Olympic Games this month, spectators and television viewers will be reminded that much has remained the same, from the metropolis’ towering landmarks to the pageantry of the opening ceremony.
Please see photos here.
