Is Paris ready for the 2024 Olympics?
The Inquiry
BBC
4.6 • 1.7K Ratings
🗓️ 7 December 2023
⏱️ 24 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In less than a year, France will play host to the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The opening ceremony will be played out along the River Seine in the nation’s capital city Paris. The Seine is also set to be the scene of the open-water swimming events and work is now being done to make sure the polluted waterway will be clean and safe enough for the Olympic participants.
To accommodate the expected influx of visitors to the Games, new transport links are been built. Whilst its already been acknowledged that some of the network is planned to link up a number of Olympic sites, it won’t be ready in time for the Games. There are plans to provide extra river boats and cycle lanes.
In addition to all this is the question of whether the French themselves are in the mood to celebrate the Games. This summer saw waves of social and political unrest in the country, but traditional sporting events like the Rugby World Cup have played a role in bringing the country together.
This week on The Inquiry, we’re asking ‘Is Paris Ready for the 2024 Olympics?’
Contributors: Jean-Marie Mouchel, Professor of Hydrology, Sorbonne University, Paris, France Florence Villeminot, Journalist and Presenter, France 24, Paris, France Bill Hanway, Global Sports Leader, AECOM, Dallas, Texas, USA Rainbow Murray, Professor of Politics, Queen Mary University of London
Presenter: Tanya Beckett Producer: Jill Collins Researcher: Matt Toulson Technical Producer: Kelly Young Production Co-ordinator: Jordan King Editor Tara McDermott
Photo: Olympic Rings to celebrate the IOC official announcement that Paris won the 2024 Olympic bid are seen in front of the Eiffel Tower at the Trocadero square in Paris, France, September 16, 2017. Credit: Reuters
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The look at the stories making the headlines with insights from the BBC's global |
| 0:14.2 | network of experts. Search for the global story wherever you get your BBC |
| 0:19.4 | podcasts. Welcome to the inquiry with me Tanya Beckett. |
| 0:27.0 | One question, four expert witnesses and an answer. |
| 0:36.0 | It's less than a year before Paris will play host to the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic games and the excitement is building. |
| 0:45.0 | The French capital is preparing a glittering kick-off to the games, |
| 0:52.0 | but this time there is an important difference. |
| 0:56.3 | In a break from tradition, the opening ceremony will take place not in a stadium, but along the |
| 1:02.2 | banks of the capital's iconic River Sen. |
| 1:07.8 | Some 10,000 athletes will process in boats along the water in a six-er journey to reach the Trocadero Plaza, |
| 1:16.0 | where the final bursts of the celebratory shows will take place. |
| 1:21.0 | And there is another important first. |
| 1:25.0 | Paris is planning for most spectators, those viewing from the upper keys, |
| 1:30.0 | to witness the opening ceremony for free. |
| 1:34.0 | The hope is that this will help make the games more inclusive. |
| 1:38.0 | Because there is another broader purpose here, |
| 1:42.0 | preparations for the games are taking place in another broader purpose here. |
| 1:43.0 | Preparations for the games are taking place in France |
| 1:45.0 | at a time of deep national division. |
| 1:49.0 | For the last few years, the country has been mired in protests and the president |
| 1:54.5 | Emmanuel Macron now a year into his second term has seen his approval |
| 2:00.3 | rating slide to record lows. This week on the inquiry we're asking |
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