Paris Olympics 2024: A Historic Inauguration at Trocadero and India’s Strong Contingent
New Delhi: On July 26, 2024, the 46th Olympic Games will commence with a groundbreaking opening ceremony at Trocadero, Paris. French President Emmanuel Macron will deliver his address at this iconic venue, marking a historic departure from traditional stadium-based inaugurations.
The ceremony will feature a 6 km parade along the Seine River, with 10,000 athletes from 206 nations participating in a unique procession that starts at Austerlitz Bridge and concludes at Trocadero, providing a panoramic view of the Eiffel Tower.
This memorable event echoes a personal visit from December 1988, when the Eiffel Tower, then Europe’s tallest structure, was a focal point during my trip to Paris. I was also reminded of the ‘Festival of India’ in France in 1986, inaugurated by Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi at the same venue, celebrating Indian culture and arts.
As the French showcased Indian arts with luminaries such as Pandit Ravi Shankar and Mallika Sarabhai, the reciprocal ‘Festival of France in India’ in 1989 was inaugurated to celebrate the bicentenary of the French Revolution and the centenary of the Eiffel Tower.
India’s Representation at Paris 2024
The Indian contingent for the Paris Olympics 2024 comprises 112 athletes, led by badminton champion P.V. Sindhu and table tennis star Sharath Kamal, who will serve as flag bearers. Notably, Hyderabad is well-represented with six athletes including P.V. Sindhu, Nikhat Zareen (boxing), Esha Singh (shooting), H.S. Prannoy, Satwik Chirag (badminton), and Sreeja Akula (table tennis).
Gagan Narang, a bronze medalist in the 2012 London Olympics, will oversee shooting village operations, while sports journalist G Rajaraman, a BCJ class of 1982 Osmania University alumnus and Press Attaché for the Indian Olympic Association, will ensure effective media coverage of the games.
India aims to surpass its previous best performance of seven medals at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Paris, having previously hosted the Games in 1900 and 1924, is set to provide an extraordinary backdrop for this global sporting event.
