With the sunset and the moonlight reflecting on the Seine River, the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games will last about four hours with a total of 205 delegations distributed in more than 80 boats on the water that irrigates Paris. The city of light will shine as never before.

The ceremony will move slowly from east to west, from the Austerlitz to the Iéna bridges, starting at 3:45 p.m. and ending at around 11:15 p.m. The ceremony will feature artistic performances and a number of performances from the city’s most famous artists. The ceremony will feature artistic performances preceding the athletes’ parade.

All athletes will pass by more than 300,000 spectators who will be gathered behind the security cordons as well as all those watching the ceremony on giant screens that will broadcast everything that happens in Paris.

THE TRANSFORMATION OF THE SEINE

The director of ceremonies for the Paris Games, Marie-Catherine Ettori, commented that “for one night, the Seine will be transformed into a gigantic open-air ceremony”. Once the athletes disembark, it is time for the final part of the ceremony, which will take place on the Place Trocadero, overlooking the Eiffel Tower.

Around security, it has already been commented that the president of France, Emmanuel Macron, said that two more scenarios were being considered in case security on the river was not fully under control. Without questioning what Macron said, France’s sports minister, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra has been very optimistic about the ceremony on the Seine, “we are still working on that fantastic ceremony on the Seine.”