Paris welcomes Olympic Games with groundbreaking opening ceremony on the Seine

olympics-2024
Paris Welcomes Olympic Games With Groundbreaking Opening Ceremony On The Seine
Ireland flagbearer Sarah Lavin during the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games in France. Photo: Martin Rickett/PA
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By Ian Parker, PA, Paris

Paris welcomed the Olympic Games with an opening ceremony like no other as athletes sailed down the River Seine to the sound of Lady Gaga and more.

Zinedine Zidane starred in a video to tee up the arrival of the Olympic flame before flares set off from the Pont d’Austerlitz Bridge formed a tricolore.

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A total of 85 boats then began carrying the team delegations on a six-kilometre journey through the centre of Paris, with more than 300,000 spectators lining the banks of the river.

Paris 2024 Olympic Games – Opening Ceremony
Smoke resembling the flag of France billows above the Pont d’Austerlitz bridge during the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Photo: John Walton/PA

The weather did not play ball as the ceremony was hit by steady rain, but there was still a carnival atmosphere as an array of performances sought to convey the story of Paris and of France.

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Lady Gaga was the first to steal the show, bursting forth from behind a pair of out-sized pink pom-poms to deliver a burlesque take on the French classic ‘Mon truc en plume’.

The performances came in all shapes and sizes, with Gojira adding a dramatic twist of heavy metal.

Paris 2024 Olympic Games – Opening Ceremony
Lady Gaga performed during the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics. Photo: John Walton/PA

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Taoiseach Simon Harris and British prime minister Keir Starmer were among those watching from the main stadium in the Jardins du Trocadero.

Other famous faces within the stadium – aside from IOC president Thomas Bach and French president Emmanuel Macron included Ariana Grande, Serena Williams and John Legend.

Paris 2024 Olympic Games – Opening Ceremony
Taoiseach Simon Harris sits behind British prime minister Keir Starmer while sheltering from the the rain at the Trocadero during the Paris Olympics opening ceremony. Photo: Mike Egerton/PA

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With the rain getting increasingly heavy, one of the big screens in the stadium relaying pictures of the parade to the watching dignitaries failed a little over an hour in.

That came just before Ireland team hit the screens, led by flagbearers Sarah Lavin and Shane Lowry.

The Team Ireland contingent of 26 took centre stage cruising along the River Seine, dressed head to toe in their custom Laura Weber designed suitings.

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The Irish Olympic team during the opening ceremony. Photo: Pauline Ballet/Pool/PA

Also among those representing Ireland on boat number 36 were taekwondo athlete Jack Wooley, boxers Michaela Walsh, Jenny Lehane and Daina Moorhouse, sailors Finn Lynch and Eve McMahon and their coaches, alongside Chef de Mission for the Games Gavin Noble.

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