PARIS: The Olympic rings are displayed on the first floor of the Eiffel Tower ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games here on Friday — Reuters PARIS, June 7 (AFP): If there was any doubt as to whether the French public would embrace the Olympics, the month of May gave a pretty clear indication, as over a million spectators turned out to watch the Olympic torch light up its path across the country.
The torch, which has been crossing France for almost a month and is about to leave for the West Indies, has provided the perfect gentle launch for the Games which get underway in Paris with the opening ceremony along the Seine on July 26.
The images from Marseille in the south, where the torch arrived on board the Belem on May 8, to Mont Saint Michel in the north-west have been breathtaking and it has all passed off, thus far, without serious incident.
"There's no denying that Marseille launched the momentum," says Gregory Murac, head of the torch relay for the organising committee.
In addition to a crowd of 200,000, more than 5.9 million television viewers watched rapper Jul light up the cauldron, in an atmosphere worthy of a Marseille football match.
That in itself was a massive relief to the organisers, who then watched as the torch began its journey, the public turning out in huge numbers along the way.
Reuters adds: Paris 2024 organisers on Friday unveiled a display of the Olympic rings on the Eiffel Tower with 50 days to go until the Summer Olympics in the French capital.
The 29- by 13-metre construction, made of recycled steel, was installed on the south side of Paris' iconic monument by some 30 workers, using four cranes.
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