Paris 2024 Olympics opening ceremony fails to impress

The Olympics opening ceremony, held along the famous Seine River in Paris, has been heavily criticised by viewers who described it as “the worst” due to persistent rain that hampered the audio.

Despite the ambitious attempt to host the ceremony outside a traditional stadium, the weather significantly affected the event’s success.

A boat with the French delegation passes under the passerelle Debilly footbridge. PHOTO: AFP

A flotilla of 85 boats carried 6,800 athletes, who donned plastic ponchos to keep spirits high amid the downpour. Performances by Lady Gaga and around 3,000 dancers, acrobats, and actors were marred by rain, with many viewers finding the audio issues unbearable. Social media was abuzz with complaints, calling the ceremony “boring” and a “disappointment.”

One user remarked, “France is doing good, but it’s nowhere near the 2012 London Olympics opening ceremony.” Another shared an image of Rishi Sunak on a podium with the caption “Stop the boats,” expressing their dissatisfaction with the water-bound parade.

Another used a picture of Rishi Sunak on a podium that reads: ‘Stop the boats’ to describe how they felt about the water-bound parade.

For the first time in history, the opening ceremony was held outside a closed stadium. Paris hosted a unique water parade along a 6km stretch of the Seine, featuring 160 boats carrying 94 athletes each. However, the novelty failed to impress many fans.

“I’m sorry, but this is the worst Olympic opening ceremony in memory,” wrote one viewer. “Bringing the athletes in on boats is an interesting idea, but it looks rubbish and misses the roar of the crowd.”

Athletes of Team Antigua and Bermuda and Team Saudi Arabia in their boats. PHOTO: AFP

Critics also commented on the boats’ appearance, suggesting they should have been more uniform and elaborate.

Gaming fans drew comparisons between a masked torchbearer seen running across rooftops and Arno, a character from the video game Assassin’s Creed. The official Assassin’s Creed X account even joined in, posting a video of Arno with the caption, “Keep an eye on Paris’ rooftops – Arno might just be watching from above.”

A performance by a man painted blue and covered in flowers and fruit, depicting the Greek god Dionysus, left viewers bewildered. Comparisons were made to a smurf, an avatar, and Iggle Piggle from the children’s TV show In The Night Garden. “Can this get any worse? Avatar meets smurf remake,” one user commented.

Further criticism came as performances of the can-can, songs from Les Misérables, the opera Carmen, and a show by French heavy metal band Gojira were drowned out by the rain.

“Hilarious irony that the French are relying so heavily on their contribution to different musical genres and yet all the microphones are picking up is the rain,” joked one viewer.

Meteorologists had predicted the unusual rainy July weather could be disastrous for the outdoor ceremony, and their forecast proved accurate.

The screen at the Trocadéro, where thousands of spectators gathered, suffered a blackout due to the dreary weather. Instead of enjoying the Parisian sun, spectators, including celebrities, were seen in ponchos and under umbrellas.

As one social media user quipped, “If this rain keeps up by the time they get to Zimbabwe, they’ll be able to sail the boat down the street!” Another added sarcastically, “Well, this fancy outside idea went well, didn’t it?”