The concept had been derided as overly ambitious and the location criticised as a prime security risk. But after years of preparation, France breathe a sigh of relief yesterday -- it had pulled off the Olympic opening ceremony for the 2024 Paris Games. Opting for a ceremony on the waters of the River Seine rather than the standard option of a stadium was a theatrical gesture typical of President Emmanuel Macron but which brought considerable risks.
The day was also far from ideal. It began with news of three attacks on signal infrastructure on the French railway network which will disrupt travel for the next days and raises the prospect of a coordinated bid by so far unknown individuals to upset the Games. Meanwhile the weather conspired against organisers and spectators, with an unseasonable deluge drenching performers, athletes and onlookers protected by nothing more than plastic ponchos.
But the show went on. It lasted a marathon four hours, reaching a crescendo with a spectacular climax as the Olympic flame soared into the sky aboard a cauldron tethered to a balloon and Celine Dion serenaded Paris with an Edith Piaf song from the Eiffel Tower. The eclectic show put on by director Thomas Jolly was not to everyone's taste -- the Times of London called it "surreal" and a "damp squib" but no-one could doubt its originality and daring.
And above all the mass event had passed off safely without incident. Parisians and visitors will now again be able to enjoy most of the city wi.
