Due to security reasons, the total attendance capacity at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games opening ceremony will be cut in half. French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin confirmed the move in an interview with French TV broadcast network France 2.
French officials previously stated that around 600,000 people would be in attendance for the ceremony. Now, Daramin says that 104,000 people with paid tickets would be in stands located directly alongside Paris’ Seine River, while 220,000 others would be able to watch for free on raised roadways that span across a six-kilometer (around four miles) stretch of the river. In addition, free tickets will not be available to the public and are invitation-only.
Although Daramin said that there was no specific terrorist threat targeting the Games, an “anti-terrorist security perimeter” will be put in place. Other security measures, such as an anti-drone protocol and a five-hour airspace closure (the ban of aircraft from flying over a certain area) around Paris on the night of the ceremony, will also be implemented.
The opening ceremony of the Paris Games is bound to be unconventional, with it being the first-ever Olympics opening ceremony that won’t be held in a stadium. The Parade of Nations will be on the Seine River, with each national delegation having its own boat. Fans can watch the parade and other festivities either by the river or on the top floors of buildings near the Seine. The parade will follow a six-kilometer route that starts at the Austerlitz Bridge and stops at the Iéna Bridge.
The Paris opening ceremony will be on July 26, 2024, at 8:24 p.m. local time (2:24 p.m. EST).