Boundary-breaking, genre-defying and unprecedented: the Paris Olympics opening ceremony kicked off the 2024 Summer Olympics with pulsating energy and a unique spectacle that will never be forgotten. Here are five memorable moments:
The unwanted rain
The opening ceremony’s creator, Thomas Jolly, a renowned French theater director, carefully choreographed every minute of the festival along the banks of the River Seine.
But there was one factor he couldn’t plan for: the weather. The opening ceremony had the misfortune of taking place while heavy summer rains were falling over Paris, even though forecasts showed warm sunny days ahead.
As the national teams paraded in boats along the Seine, they tried to make the best of the situation, probably hoping that the humidity would not have an impact on their health before the events.
Renowned French classical pianist Alexandre Kantorow was drenched while performing on a Paris bridge without any covering, while social media users expressed concern about his equally unprotected instrument.
Ironically, the piece he played was Maurice Ravel’s “Jeux d’eau” (“Water Game”).
Meanwhile, an image of the new British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, went viral, showing him refusing to wear the standard plastic poncho to stay dry – demonstrating classic British defiance in the face of bad weather.
The big comeback
Canadian singer Celine Dion, who was battling a rare disease, made a spectacular return singing a moving version of Edith Piaf’s “Hymn to Love” at the Eiffel Tower at the ceremony’s climax.
Showing perfect intonation and hitting the notes with ease, she serenaded a captive Paris as the cauldron was lit by France’s most decorated track and field athlete, Marie-Jose Perec, and three-time Olympic gold medal-winning judoka, Teddy Riner, took to the sky over Paris in a balloon.
Last month, she vowed she would fight to recover from the rare and debilitating neurological condition that has kept her off the stage.
Dion first revealed in December 2022 that she had been diagnosed with Stiff Person Syndrome, an incurable autoimmune disease.
A French classic
Around 80 artists from the famous Moulin Rouge cabaret performed the iconic cancan dance that dates back to the 1820s, in pink costumes specially designed for the occasion.
The famous song, however, gained a new electronic touch that set the tone for a night that sought to give a new touch to classical French culture.
As the teams began their parade down the Seine, they were serenaded by an accordionist – dressed in the obligatory French costume of beret and blue striped T-shirt – precariously perched on a bridge.
Challenging discrimination
There was a racist backlash on social media and criticism from the far right when it became known that French Malian singer Aya Nakamura would perform at the opening ceremony.
But with President Emmanuel Macron himself supporting her involvement, she and her dance group led the way to a medley of her hits and a song by the great Charles Aznavour.
In an eloquent symbol, he received the support of the musicians of the French Republican Guard and performed against the backdrop of the Académie Française, the austere guardians of the French language.
A dance sequence promoting tolerance of sexual and gender identities ended with actor Philippe Katerine appearing as the Greek god Dionysus nude and painted pink, with strategically placed flowers covering his modesty.
In possibly Jolly’s greatest coup de théâtre of the entire ceremony, 10 statues of pioneering French women emerged from the waters of the Seine in an attempt to forever engrave their achievements in minds.
They included French writer and activist Olympe de Gouges, who was guillotined in 1793, Simone Veil, a Holocaust survivor who led the legalization of abortion in France, and feminist activist Gisele Halimi.
Eclectic music
No one could accuse the opening ceremony of being rigid in its choice of music, with the city pulsing in every style, from classical to opera, from pop to electro.
The ceremony wasn’t limited to star power, with Lady Gaga appearing to perform a French music hall classic and local stars like rapper Rim’K also performing at the ceremony.
But perhaps the biggest applause came for French metal band Gojira, who appeared on the high platforms of the Conciergerie, an iconic building from the French Revolution, the first time a metal band had appeared at an Olympic opening ceremony.
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