Dozens of boats cruise the Seine in successful Paris Olympics opening ceremony rehearsal

NEWS WIRES
·2-min read

Curious onlookers gathered on bridges as dozens of boats snaked along the Seine river on Monday in a rehearsal for the Paris Olympics' unique opening ceremony next month.

A total of 55 boats made the journey from Pont d'Austerlitz, named after a French military victory in 1805, to Pont d'Iéna, a stone's throw from the Eiffel Tower, the nation's most striking and best known landmark.

Officials are confident that the near four-hour ceremony will run like clockwork on July 26.

“Six months ago we had like 10 minutes delay on the timing and today we are very close, almost to the second to our targets,” Thierry Reboul, the executive director for ceremonies said. “So it is very satisfying. We’ve respected an extremely precise level of timing.”

On the day of the eagerly-awaited event, around 200 Olympic delegations will join the parade on more than 80 boats. They will make the journey from east to west, along a six-kilometer (3.7-mile) route which has become a major talking point — for its audacity as a unique open-air event and for its exposure to potential danger.

There will be a final rehearsal, involving the full armada of boats, before the opening ceremony — one which is expected to bring 100 world leaders to the city's embankments, where more than 300,000 people will watch.

“We will give our heart and souls to make it a great success for the French people,” France’s Sports Minister Amélie Oudéa-Castéra said Monday. “They deserve it.”

She bristled a little when answering.


Read more on FRANCE 24 English

Read also:
Security fears over splashy River Seine opening ceremony of Paris Olympics
French NGO sounds alarm over Seine pollution levels ahead of Olympics
Paris Olympics must have ‘plan B’ for Seine events, swim champion says

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