The Olympic Games in Paris are set to be one of the sporting highlights of the year. Preparations are underway in France’s capital. The planned opening ceremony with a boat parade on the Seine has raised further safety concerns – the update from sportschau.de in the run-up to Paris 2024.
The Olympic host city Paris wants to set the first highlight at the opening ceremony on July 26th: the traditional march of the nations should not take place in the Olympic Stadium, but as a boat parade on the Seine in front of around 300,000 spectators.
A novelty in the history of the Summer Olympics, which has also brought the issue of security into greater focus: The banks of the Seine will become a high-security zone for six kilometers, from the start of the parade at the Pont d’Austerlitz to the grand finale at the Eiffel Tower explained. Even more so after a German tourist was killed near the Eiffel Tower at the beginning of December 2023, presumably by an Islamist violent criminal.
There are now new concerns about the safety of the many thousands of onlookers who will watch the spectacle from the terraces of houses along the Seine. As “Le Figaro” and “Guardian” reported on Wednesday (February 14, 2024), the Paris landowners’ association has sounded the alarm: the panoramic balconies of the old town houses, it is feared, would not be able to withstand the load if there were large crowds there during public viewing in July more people gathered than usual.
“This poses an enormous risk“said association president Olivier Princivalle. “We have to be absolutely sure that the balconies can support the additional weight and are anchored sufficiently securely in the masonry to avoid accidents.”
The Paris city administration is currently discussing having the Seine balconies checked by a structural engineer before the games, as Princivalle confirmed. The houses were mostly built at the end of the 19th century; according to official regulations, the balconies cannot accommodate more than three adults per square meter.
The real estate association is also concerned about the sometimes poor state of maintenance. Last year, parts of a balcony collapsed in the 15th arrondissement of Paris. However, it is completely unclear who will bear the enormous costs for static reports before the opening ceremony.
Macron’s decree: “Bouquinistes” are allowed to stay
The security precautions surrounding the opening ceremony should actually also make way for the “bouquinistes”, the famous book sellers’ stands on the banks of the Seine. The Paris police had ordered the closure of 600 of the 900 book stalls because they could pose a security risk. The authorities feared that bombs could be hidden in the stalls. In addition, the move by the sellers was intended to create more space for spectators.
After much criticism, including from the public, French President Emanuel Macron intervened. As Macron’s office announced on Tuesday (February 13, 2024), the president had “asked the Interior Ministry and the Prefect’s Office to preserve the locations of all booksellers and not to force any of them to move.”
The booksellers, who have been plying their trade on the Seine for 150 years, protested against the threatened closure. They had just recovered from the consequences of the corona pandemic and were relying on good business in view of the 16 million visitors expected in Paris during the games.