The Olympic flame of the Paris 2024 Games goes aboard a 19th century sailing ship, on an 11-day journey that will take it, across the Mediterranean Sea, to Marseille, France, where it will begin its tour of the country, before the opening ceremony of the mega sporting event.
The 11-day journey of the Olympic flame for the Paris 2024 Games began on Saturday, April 27, with the traditional sending of this torch on a 19th-century sailing ship, which will sail from its origin in Greece to its final destination in France.
This is a tradition that is followed in each of the editions of the Olympic Games.
When the flame reaches the Gallic country, It will travel through its territory passing through the French departments and overseas regions (including New Caledonia and French Polynesia) to reach Paris, where the opening ceremony will take place on July 26, according to the explanation of the organizers of the mega sporting event.
The flame was lit on April 16 at Olympia, the original site that witnessed the ancient games for more than a millennium and which, according to the World History Encyclopedia, was a Greek sanctuary dedicated to the cult of Zeus.
On Friday, April 26, at the Panathenaic stadium in the center of Athens, capital of Greece, site of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896, after having toured some parts of Greece for 11 days, the flame was handed over to the French organizers.
In the Panathenaic, the only stadium in the world built entirely of marble, Antigoni Drisbioti, European walking champion, entered carrying the Olympic flame and presented it to Frenchwoman Gabriela Papadakis, gold medalist in skating at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. , who gave it to her compatriot Béatrice Hess, the athlete with the most Paralympic medals in French history (25 between 1984 and 2004 in swimming).
The last torchbearer in Greece was Ioannis Fountoulis, captain of the national water polo team and silver medalist at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. He had the task of lighting the cauldron, accompanied by his teammates.
After being lit, the flame was housed in the French embassy in Athens, before beginning This Saturday his trip on the Belem, a three-masted sailing ship that was built in the same year that the first modern Olympic Games were held.according to a report from the AP agency.
The llama's arrival in France is scheduled for May 8, and organizers expect about 150,000 spectators at the ceremony in the Old Port of Marseille which, founded by Greek settlers from Phocaea in 600 BC, will host the Olympic sailing competitions.
A reality after seven years of preparation
The honor of carrying the Olympic flame lantern fell to Tony Estanguet, president of the Paris 2024 organizing committee, who, together with the Belem crew, embarked on this journey.
Paris agreed to host the Games in 2017 with French President Emmanuel Macron leading the delegation.
Expectant about the results of the organization of the sporting event, the French authorities navigate between security concerns and the acceptance of the French population regarding the organization of the event.
During March, a survey cited by the Reuters agency showed that, In France, 57% of people had little or no enthusiasm for the Paris Games, which run from July 26 to August 26.
“Am I excited about the Games? No, I'm sorry, I know it's not the right answer, but I'm not. I'm not excited at all,” account manager Carole Gabriel-Jullien told the same news agency. 57 years old, who plans to work from home during the Olympics.
Changes to infrastructure, the number of people visiting France and fears over security risks are keeping the French on alert as the government focuses on tightening controls.
However, there is enthusiasm among other sectors of the population. Jacques Etoundi, 55, who works in logistics, told Reuters that he is excited about the Games. “For us it is an opportunity to celebrate the Games in France. We are happy,” he said. He added: “We're really looking forward to it. We know everyone will be watching, so we'll do everything we can to welcome everyone.”
France is eyeing the 2030 Winter Games
On April 22, the French Olympic Committee began a tour of facilities in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions, with the aim of presenting its candidacy to host the 2030 Winter Olympic Games.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) commission began its visit in La Clusaz, in the northern French Alps, where France wants to hold ski competitions.
The president of the future host commission for the Winter Olympics, Karl Stoss, said he had “a very, very good feeling,” but that “we have not crossed the finish line yet,” according to the Reuters agency.
The budget of the Organizing Committee for the French Alps candidacy is around 2,000 million euros, less than half of the Paris 2024 budget, which amounts to 4.4 billion euros.
The French Alps bid is the only one on the list to host the 2030 Winter Olympics, having begun a “specific dialogue” with the IOC in November.
The president of the Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes region, Laurent Wauquiez, stated that 95% of the French project is based on using existing infrastructure.
As things stand, the French Alps could officially host the 2030 Winter Olympic Games, on July 24 in Paris, during the 142nd session of the IOC. The French country also hosted the Winter Games in 1924 in Chamonix and in 1968 in Grenoble.
With AP, EFE and Reutres.
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