The opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris has been nothing short of a show. Taking place in France’s capital city, Paris, the event culminated in a historical first and a stellar performance by French-Canadian singer, Celine Dion.
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Processions of the opening ceremony included the Parade of Nations along the River Seine, a performance by Lady Gaga, and reports of a mysterious hooded figure carrying the Olympic flame across the rooftops of Paris.
The ceremony led up to the historical moment of the Olympic cauldron’s ceremonial lighting.
In a historical first, the cauldron was lit and sent off above Paris in a hot air balloon, by French judo great Teddy Riner and sprinter Marie-José Pérec.
Okay. This is a very cool Olympic Cauldron. #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/HvUYjq7xXB
— Kenneth Chan (@iamkennethchan) July 26, 2024
The torch made its way across Paris throughout the procession of events, landing in the hands of 100-year-old Charles Coste, the oldest French Olympic champion. Coste passed the cauldron on to Riner and Pérec, who then lit the flame that floated into the Paris night sky, reports Advanced Press (AP).
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The ceremonial lighting of the Olympic cauldron at the Paris 2024 Games marks a first in history, where the Olympic flame is lit outside of a ceremonial stadium and sent off mid-air.
Marie-José Pérec and Teddy Riner light the Olympic cauldron which takes off into the sky in a hot air balloon
The cauldron was “a tribute to the first flight in a hydrogen-filled gas balloon,” which took place in Paris in 1783
In December of that year, the hot-air balloon… pic.twitter.com/umnzjb2J3w
— Farrukh (@implausibleblog) July 26, 2024
The hot air balloon housing the Olympic cauldron, according to AP, is a tribute to the first ride taken in a hydrogen-filled gas balloon — made in 1783 by two of that balloon’s French inventors.
As the cauldron takes to the Paris night sky, a stellar performance by French-Canadian singer Celine Dion rings from the base of the Eiffel Tower, as the Olympic Games officially begin.
Celine Dion #Paris2024 #Olympics #Olympic2024 pic.twitter.com/3f8Pm0qqrE
— Celine Dion Icon (@celinedionlcon) July 26, 2024
WOW Céline Dion just performed for the first time in four years on the Eiffel Tower for the #Olympics #OpeningCeremony and absolutely crushed it….I’m totally not crying, you’re crying 🥹 that was awesome pic.twitter.com/TYLefG0ReY
— Wu Tang is for the Children (@WUTangKids) July 26, 2024
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Feature Image:Buda Mendes / Getty Images
