The Olympic Games have already “brought a lot of happiness and emotion”said Tony Estanguet, president of the Paris 2024 organizing committee, on Saturday August 3. “We faced a lot of distrust” but “the success is total”added Pierre Rabadan, the deputy mayor of Paris in charge of the Olympic Games. Many concerns have accompanied the organization of the Olympic Games in recent months, particularly concerning crowds in transport or security risks. But for the moment, the organizers can be happy with a near-flawless performance. Franceinfo takes stock of this first week in terms of organization.
A well-received opening ceremony
Olympic cauldron in the sky, Lady Gaga as a parade leader, Aya Nakamura with the Republican Guard, Celine Dion on the Eiffel Tower… The spectacular opening ceremony orchestrated by Thomas Jolly was judged “successful” by more than 85% of French people, according to a survey by the Harris Interactive institute. Only 5% of those questioned, according to the quota method, judged the show “not at all successful”The French and international press also welcomed “one of the most spectacular ceremonies in history”according to Los Angeles Times.
These enthusiastic reactions did not prevent controversy. Several far-right political leaders such as Marion Maréchal expressed annoyance at certain scenes deemed “woke”. The Conference of Bishops of France also deplored “scenes of mockery of Christianity”For its part, the organizing committee defended a celebration of a multicultural, diverse and inclusive France. “We take on this creativity, of moving the lines and we take on this audacity of Thomas Jolly”responded his spokesperson. The event was also marked by cyberbullying experienced by several actors of this ceremony, notably the drag queen artist Nicky Doll, the DJ Barbara Butch and the director Thomas Jolly.
A festive and friendly atmosphere
Police officers four behind a phone to follow the events, fervor behind the giant screens, fan zones and even people smiling at each other in the metro, Paris has been a party since the opening ceremony on July 26. Carried by the very French playlist of the DJs, the public in the stadiums sings at the top of their lungs songs by Joe Dassin, Edith Piaf and of course the unmissable That I love you from Johnny Halliday to every gold medal won by a French man or woman.
Behind the “big heads” brandished by the supporters in the stands, there is also a carefully thought-out strategy by the Paris 2024 teams. “Our plan was simple: for people to support the French athlete before he had his medal around his neck”explains Paul Cometto, responsible for the atmosphere within the organizing committee.
This fervor visible in stadiums and on social networks has contaminated the streets of Paris. There is “93% occupancy rate” for the competitions, said Tony Estanguet, president of the organizing committee, on Monday. And “two million visitors”including 400,000 in Paris, were counted “on the celebration areas” in France. The Olympic cauldron, located in the Tuileries Park, near the Louvre, generated “160 000 reservations”.
According to Pierre Rabadan, the deputy mayor of Paris for the Olympic Games, quoted by AFP, Parisians who were skeptical from the start have returned to blend into the popular celebration of the Olympic Games. He claims to have received “dozens of messages a day from people” who today “want to cancel their vacation to stay because they are so amazed by the enthusiasm and the setting we have created with the Games in the heart of the city, as close as possible to heritage buildings and Parisian history”.
A barely swimmable Seine
The men’s triathlon event was postponed for twenty-four hours on Tuesday, due to the quality of the water in the Seine. The rain put the nerves of the organizers and athletes to the test with this postponement, preceded by two training cancellations for health reasons. But the competition was finally able to take place on Wednesday. Tony Estanguet now says he is “serene” for the next events, starting with the mixed triathlon relay which is to be held on Monday.
“There is no reason to think that it will not happen.”said the chairman of the organizing committee, reporting that “weather forecast pretty good for the weekend”. “We have a window until Tuesday” for the mixed relay, he recalled. The event could indeed be postponed to Tuesday if the Seine is too polluted on Monday. The marathon swimming events will then be held on August 8 and 9.
Smooth traffic flow on public transport
Parisians were expecting transport hell during the Olympics, but so far no major problems have been reported. “The people of the Paris region are here, they have not fled Paris”at least from the point of view of public transport, confided Laurent Probst, the general director of Ile-de-France Mobilités. Over the first three days of the first week, “We are at 7.2 million validations for 4 million people”he added, or about 500,000 more people than usual, which is in line with the authorities’ forecast models.
The head of the RATP, former Prime Minister Jean Castex, had suggested that there was “probably a little less regular residents” of the Paris region than anticipated in transport, which is therefore disputed by the general director of IDFM. The impression of less crowded and more frequent transport comes from the fact that certain lines have been reinforced with an offer improved by 60% compared to a winter day, such as on metro lines 9 and 10 and the RER C.
A black spot in the transport system set up during these Games is that not all the facilities have yet met the challenge of accessibility, despite the investments of recent years. Several hundred thousand people with reduced mobility, who are visually impaired or hard of hearing, are expected during the period of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Security ensured so far
The sabotage of the TGV network, a few hours before the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, may have increased fears about the progress of these Games. But no major incident was reported in the first week. The resigning Minister of the Interior Gérald Darmanin also announced on Friday that there had been “200 arrests since the start of the Olympic Games” in Ile-de-France and welcomed a ““Very important success in terms of security”at the end of an Olympic week.
Visiting the Saint-Denis police station (Seine-Saint-Denis), he attributed the drop in crime around the Olympic sites in the Paris region to “hyper-presence” law enforcement. Some 35,000 police officers and gendarmes, 18,000 soldiers from Operation Sentinelle and several thousand private security agents are mobilized on average per day. The minister added that there had been no “characterized threat” of attack, nor detection of project “organized attack”.
A canteen criticized in the Olympic village
Queues too long, lack of meat or eggs, portions too small… Several athletes have criticized the meals served in the “largest restaurant in the world” of the Olympic Village, including American gymnastics star Simone Biles. Asked about French gastronomy, the queen of queens of the discipline did not seem thrilled by the menus on offer. “I don’t think they serve us French cuisine in the village like you can eat outside. For athletes, it’s a little more… healthy.”she judged, adding that “the pizzas are good”.
For Romanian rower Iulian Chelaru, it was the lack of protein that was the problem. “We didn’t have enough meat, but now it’s better”he told AFP. “At first there weren’t very big portions, but now it’s better”added German swimmer Lucas Matzerath. “Certain products, such as eggs and grilled meats, are particularly popular with athletes and volumes have therefore been increased, in line with Paris 2024”assured the Sodexo group to AFP. The organizers have even committed to offering the equivalent of 900g of meat per athlete per day.