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Jeddah - Yasmine El Tohamy - PARIS: The 2024 Olympics are getting off to a rough start in Paris, with suspected acts of sabotage targeting France’s flagship high-speed rail network and cloudy skies and forecast rains ahead of its sprawling, ambitious opening ceremony.
Athletes from Saudi Arabia will be competing across four sports — athletics, equestrian, swimming and taekwondo — and you can read a guide to everything about them, their preparation and their Olympics schedule here.
Likewise, there are dozens of Arab athletes taking part in this year’s Games, you can check out Arab News’ guide to the best male competitors and female athletes representing the Middle East and North Africa.
Throughout the Olympics, you can follow all the action from Paris at the designated Arab News Sport section here.
Read the latest below (all times BST):
17:30 - One of the highlights of the pre-Games events is the Olympic torch relay. It travels from Greece all around the world before ending its journey at the host city, in this case Paris. Watch a clip of its journey below:
17:15 - Despite the rocky start to Friday and the threat of a deluge on the French capital, the opening ceremony organizers are still in a positive mood. Which is probably just as well...
16:45 - Actress Michelle Yeoh has shared a heart-warming message about the Olympic Refugee Team, who will be representing more than 100 million displaced people worldwide.
16:35 - We're still being teased as to who will performing at the ceremony. Any predictions? Let us know at @ArabNewsSport...
16:30 - French President Emmanuel Macron has started welcoming several dozen of heads of state and government at the Elysee presidential palace. Macron’s office said the Elysee reception was “an opportunity for France to deliver a message of peace and tolerance as 10,500 athletes from around the world gather to take part in the world’s biggest event.”
About 100 world leaders, government officials and heads of international organizations are expected to attend the ceremony later on.
(AFP)
16:15 - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Friday that he absolutely condemned the saboteurs who struck France's TGV high-speed train network and hoped for the quick identification of the perpetrators. You can read about the arson attack here.
16:00 - The International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach has taken part in the Olympic flame relay as the Opening Ceremony nears.
15:45 - French TV shows Pharrell Williams carrying the Olympic flame atop the cathedral of Saint-Denis, on the northern outskirts of Paris.
His appearance follows superstar rapper Snoop Dogg being given the honor of carrying the flame earlier on Friday, which you can read more about below. Hopefully, he didn't drop it like it's hot...
(X/@Paris2024)
Camping out for the opening ceremony
People arrived hours before the start of the opening ceremony along the Seine River, seeking the best spot at the viewing areas. Some brought folding chairs, books, sandwiches and water.
Monica Merino, 57, came to Paris from Madrid for the Olympics and said it would be her first time watching the opening ceremony in person.
“We have visited Paris many times, and it is very different now because it is empty of people and full of military and police,” she said.
Giannis skirts train troubles
Greek basketball star Giannis Antetokounmpo, selected as one of his country’s flagbearers, avoided Friday’s train issues altogether.
He left Lille on Thursday, traveling in a convoy of buses alongside players from a few other teams. A team spokesperson said multiple teams chose to travel at the same time for security purposes.
Germany’s men’s team boarded buses bound for the ceremony Friday morning, having never planned to travel by train. The plan was to then to immediately head back to Lille for Saturday’s game against Japan.
The Paris Olympics have sold a record 9.7 million tickets — but more are available
After getting off to a rocky start last year, Olympics 2024 organizers said the Paris Games have broken the record for the most number of tickets sold or allocated in the event’s history. And yet, tickets are still available.
Organizers say 9.7 million tickets were sold or allocated for this year’s Olympic and Paralympic Games, with 8.7 million sold for the former and 1 million for the latter.
For Paris, a total of 10 million tickets were put on sale for the Olympics — meaning that despite the historic popularity of the sporting events and unprecedented scale of this year’s competitions, there will still be many empty seats remaining.
The total ticketing figure will, however, likely rise because tickets are still on sale for some of the 45 sports.
Snoop Dogg keeps it lit
The rapper-turned-NBC Olympics correspondent was one of the final Olympic torch bearers before the opening ceremony. He carried the flame in Saint-Denis, just outside Paris.
In an interview before his leg of the relay, Snoop Dogg vowed to be on his “best behavior.”
“I’m going to be on my best athleticism. I’ll be able to breathe slow to walk fast and hold the torch with a smile on my face, because I realize how prestigious this event is,” he said.
Two trains carrying Olympic athletes stopped en route to Paris
Two trains carrying Olympic athletes to Paris on the western Atlantique line were stopped hours before the opening ceremony, rail company SNCF said.
One train was canceled, and authorities hope the other will become operational.
* With AP
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