France is prepared to move the 2024 Olympic opening ceremony from the River Seine to another location should the security situation require it, President Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday.
Macron said he was against "doomsaying" and changing plans hastily © Mena Today
France is prepared to move the 2024 Olympic opening ceremony from the River Seine to another location should the security situation require it, President Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday.
"Given we're professionals, there obviously is a Plan B, Plan C, et cetera," Macron told France 5 television when asked if the security situation - currently marked by heightened alert across Europe over tensions in the Middle East - could thwart plans to hold the ceremony as planned.
Macron said he was against "doomsaying" and changing plans hastily, but added a Plan B could be triggered if "the level of insecurity requires us to revisit the initial scheme" without providing details.
European security officials have warned of a growing risk of attacks by Islamist militants amid the Israel-Hamas war, with the biggest threat likely from "lone wolf" assailants who are hard to track. France raised its security threshold in October, when a man with a knife killed a teacher in a school in northern France.
Earlier this month, the country's sports minister ruled out a change of plans after a man armed with a knife and hammer killed a German tourist and left two people wounded near the Eiffel Tower, saying "this not something we're working with."
Paris and several French cities descended into chaos on Saturday night as violent clashes erupted following PSG's Champions League final victory over Arsenal in Budapest, scenes that have become a grim ritual whenever the Qatar-backed club wins a major trophy.
Paris Saint-Germain have retained the Champions League title, defeating Arsenal 4-3 on penalties after a tense 1-1 draw in the Puskas Arena in Budapest on Saturday, a result that marks the pinnacle of one of the most audacious nation-branding exercises in sporting history.
When Qatar's sovereign wealth fund quietly acquired Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) on June 30, 2011, for an estimated €100 million, the stated ambition was clear: to project influence, reshape perception, and buy prestige on the world's biggest sporting stage.
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