Paris Olympics Planners Sweat Over Opening Ceremony

The unprecedented opening ceremony planned for the 2024 Paris Olympics, just 500 days away, promises to be both spectacular and a serious security headache, with the arrangements still being worked out by anxious officials. The vision, as announced by French President Emmanuel Macron, is to take the ceremony out of its customary location in the main stadium and put it in the heart of the capital. Sporting delegations are set to sail down the river Seine in boats, an armada of sporting excellence set against the backdrop of the capital's world-famous monuments in view of up to 600,000 cheering spectators.

The appeal of such a bold statement of French ambition and art de vivre to a global TV audience of hundreds of millions is clear. Turning it into reality is said to be giving planners cold sweats.

"Everyone is working and working an enormous amount," one senior French official involved in the process told AFP on condition of anonymity. "A ceremony like this has never taken place before. But we'll manage it, we'll be ready."

As the Games loom into view, the number of boats, the arrangements for spectators, and the means of controlling crowds and guarding against a terror attack or accident are still the subject of intense discussions.

The French police "have never worked on a scenario like this," a senior security source told AFP, again on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject.

"When it's something repetitive, they can debrief, make improvements, work out what works. This will be one shot," he added.

The total number of spectators allowed to line the six-kilometre (four mile) route is still up in the air, with the final figure expected to somewhere between 400,000-600,000.

Around 70,000 seats on