Barran Press
Yemeni track and field athlete Samir Al-Yafei will carry the Yemeni flag at the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics, set to take place tonight (Friday, July 26) on the Seine River.
Paris will kick off the Olympic Games with a grand ceremony that will traverse the Seine River through the heart of the French capital. The Olympics will see the participation of dozens of Arab athletes.
Yemen will be represented by a delegation of four athletes and four coaches, competing in archery, swimming, track and field, and judo at the Olympic Village in Paris.
In archery, Yasmin Al-Rimi will compete in the women's 10-meter air rifle event. In judo, Hisham Makaber will compete in the 60kg weight class.
In swimming and track and field, swimmer Yousuf Fartot will compete in the 100-meter butterfly, and runner Samir Al-Yafei will compete in the 100-meter race, according to the Yemeni Olympic Committee.
According to French media, the historic and unprecedented opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics will take place on the Seine River. This is the first time the ceremony will be held outside the main athletics stadium, breaking with tradition.
The traditional parade of athletes will take place on boats along the Seine River, passing by the most famous Parisian landmarks.
The ceremony will begin at 7:30 PM Central European Time (CEST), or 5:30 PM Greenwich Mean Time, and is expected to last over three hours.
Instead of the familiar sight of athletes marching along the track inside the stadium, guests and viewers will enjoy a boat procession on the river through the heart of the French capital.
The Seine River, the city's main waterway, will replace the traditional track, and the platforms built on the banks will become spectator stands. The setting sun will cast its rays on famous Parisian landmarks as a backdrop for the event.
With this unique outdoor event, the Paris Olympics will witness "the largest opening ceremony in terms of attendance and geographical area," according to the same source.
Paris will return to hosting the Summer Olympics from Friday to August 11, 100 years after hosting the games in 1924. The event will be marked by an unprecedented opening ceremony amidst exceptional security measures, according to France Press.
Earlier this month, Tony Estanguet, president of the organizing committee, told France Press that "organizing a ceremony on the Seine River is not easier than organizing it in a stadium (...) but it's stronger."
The government has decided to deploy tens of thousands of security forces and military personnel to ensure the safety of the opening ceremony. This is the largest number of personnel ever deployed for the event.
Athletes will compete in various sports, including "track and field, running races, high jump, basketball, cycling, judo, swimming, tennis, gymnastics," and many more.