(Paris) The flame carried to Paris, uniforms of the landing: the traditional military parade of July 14, on the occasion of the French national holiday, was placed on Sunday under the seal of the 80e anniversary of the Liberation of France and the Olympic Games.
The highlight of the event was a rider wearing a bicorn hat who rode down Avenue Foch, where the ceremony was held this year, the famous Parisian avenue of the Champs-Élysées being unavailable due to the installations needed for the next Olympic Games.
The Olympic torch was then passed to a young athlete, who in turn passed it to other teenagers dressed in white in front of the official stand, where President Emmanuel Macron was standing.
PHOTO BENOIT TESSIER, REUTERS
The Olympic torch was welcomed in the French capital.
Behind them, soldiers wearing green, yellow, red, blue and black jackets reproduced the Olympic flag, while the Marseillaise was sung and the French patrol crisscrossed the sky.
“What an emotion to welcome the flame to Paris. It’s here!” rejoiced the head of the organizing committee, Tony Estanguet, interviewed on the television channel France 2. “We’re going to welcome the world. We can’t wait,” he added.
In a France in the midst of political instability, the day after early legislative elections that did not produce an absolute majority for the main camps, and with no visibility on the next government, President Macron opened the parade calmly, standing in a command vehicle.
PHOTO YOAN VALAT, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
President Macron opened the parade standing in a command vehicle.
The head of state, who had been booed by part of the crowd in 2019, when the popular protest movement of the Yellow Vests regularly shook France, walked down Avenue Foch in front of a sparse audience, access to the ceremony having been restricted for security reasons.
” The longest day “
The ceremony was distinguished by encores at 80e anniversary of the Liberation.
The military orchestra first played the soundtrack of the Longest daya cult film from the 1960s dedicated to the American landing in France on June 6, 1944.
PHOTO LUDOVIC MARIN, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
French President Emmanuel Macron
Jeeps and other vintage vehicles, driven by soldiers in old-fashioned uniforms, also drove past the official stand, in front of which the five Olympic circles were drawn.
Several soldiers carrying the flags of the 31 countries – 14 from the West and 17 from Africa and the Maghreb – who participated in this page of history also paraded.
No tanks or armoured vehicles, however, took part in the celebrations. And given the Olympics, no foreign personalities were invited this year. A contrast with the lavish ceremonies of 2023, in the presence of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Some 22 helicopters and 45 planes, including two American and two British, crossed the Parisian sky. And 162 horses of the Republican Guard paraded on the ground.
PHOTO LUDOVIC MARIN, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Some 22 helicopters and 45 planes crossed the Parisian sky.
One of the objectives of the 2024 edition is to “highlight the links between the armies and the values of the Olympics”, twelve days before the opening ceremony in the French capital, with the final stage being a horse relay of the Olympic flame, according to the military governor of Paris, General Christophe Abad.
Some 18,000 soldiers are to participate in security for the Olympic Games (July 26-August 11), in support of the 45,000 internal security forces, police and gendarmerie.
“Through your commitment to the success of the Games, sometimes through your own athletes, you will play your full part in this season of unity and influence of the Nation,” Emmanuel Macron said on Saturday in front of an audience of high-ranking officers.
The French armed forces are waiting to discover the name of their future minister, called upon to replace Sébastien Lecornu, and to know the future of their budget, which has been constantly increasing since 2017.
On Saturday, Emmanuel Macron considered an “adjustment” of the defense budget in 2025 “necessary” due to the “rapprochement of threats”, while new priorities have emerged in recent years in the wake of the war in Ukraine, such as armed drones, which have become essential on the battlefield.
The military programming law (LPM) 2024-2030 provides for a 40% increase compared to the previous LPM with 413 billion euros over seven years.