Final rehearsals every night, between two days of events, at the Stade de France: nothing is left to chance for the closing of the Olympic Games on Sunday.
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The same artistic team as at the opening, led by director Thomas Jolly, is at the helm of this show, which is scheduled to start at 3 p.m., Quebec time zone, at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis.
The list of expected artists is being kept secret, but one big name has already leaked to the press: that of actor Tom Cruise.
AFP
Another kind of pressure
A few days before the event, the mood is very different than for the opening ceremony.
“At the opening, we had to set the tone. At the closing, we have to continue on this momentum and finish the race in the same spirit as these Olympic Games, on this wave of joy that surrounds us,” Thierry Reboul, director of ceremonies for Paris 2024, told AFP.
“We had colossal pressure for this opening ceremony, there was more ambient pessimism about how it could take place. Now, it’s another kind of pressure, people are eager… But it’s completely different, the format has nothing to do with it,” he adds.
This time, the closing show will take place in a stadium, which is more traditional.
Faced with the strong reaction concerning certain scenes seen during the opening, the director believes that “it is necessary to put things into perspective”.
“We are vigilant to ensure that the intentions are well understood. The opening is more the imagination of a country that we present. A closure is a reminder of the values of Olympism in general. We will celebrate the values of sharing, universality, but also the fragility of the world,” he specifies.
AFP
Eyes on Los Angeles
The ceremony will be an opportunity to pass the Olympic flag to Los Angeles, with a sequence entrusted to the American organizers of the 2028 Olympic Games.
“These are their 15 minutes! They defined them, created them. We only help them. What to expect? It’s… Hollywood! That’s all I can say,” concludes Thierry Reboul, leaving the mystery hanging.
