Olympics

Dear athletes,

Lovers of the Games in France and around the world! Welcome… to Paris! We missed you!

It is a huge honour to welcome you here 100 years after the last time we hosted the Summer Games. France is often said to be the country of love. One thing I know is that here, when we love, we truly love… And between France and the Games, there has been a big love story.

This love story was born nearly 130 years ago, just a few kilometers from here, in the main amphitheatre of the Sorbonne University, when Pierre de Coubertin proposed the rebirth of the ancient Olympic Games. And this love story grew, with the Games of Paris, of Chamonix, Grenoble and Albertville.

Clearly carrying on this legacy is a huge responsibility. So, we have put our whole hearts into it. When you love the Games, first of all you don’t let a few drops of rain bother you. Thank you to all those lovers of the Games who are with us – a little soggy – tonight! Thank you.

When you love the Games, you are ready to court the Games for 100 years for the chance to bring them back to Paris! And loving the Games passionately has meant we wanted to share everything that is most precious to us.

Dear athletes, you will find a piece of the Eiffel Tour at the heart of every medal. And from the Champ de mars to the Invalides, from the Grand Palais to the Château de Versailles, from the place de la Concorde to the mythical wave of Té-a-Hou-po, the richest treasures of our national heritage will be the stages on which you compete.

When you’re madly in love with the Games, you feel like you can do anything. We have been bold, doing things that have never been done before, like having this Opening Ceremony in the city, for the first time in the history of the Olympic Games. Like every host country our ambition has been to help the Games grow stronger.

And in the end, it is the Games that have helped us to grow. The Games have reminded us that in France, even if we have a hard time agreeing on things, in the moments that count, we can come together and combine all our strengths for a single purpose.

So thank you…

Thank you to the public authorities, the committed businesses, to all those who have been working behind the scenes to make this celebration happen: in Paris, Seine-Saint-Denis, the Ile-de-France region and throughout France, from Marseille to Lille, Châteauroux, Nantes, Bordeaux, Nice, Lyon, Saint-Etienne and Tahiti! I know how much we owe you.

Thank you to the Paris 2024 team, for meeting every challenge with passion for nearly ten years. Thank you to the 45 000 volunteers: you have come from 155 different countries, from all walks of life: teachers, retired people, nurses, students… and your enthusiasm will light up these Games!

A heartfelt thank you to the International Olympic Committee and President Thomas Bach, for having given France this unique opportunity and for always having been on our side. My loving thoughts are also with the founder of Paris 2024, Bernard Lapasset, a great leader from the sport of rugby who would say: “Rugby is a game of sharing. You don’t keep the ball, you pass it.”

Sharing. That is the vision he gave us for Paris 2024. This evening, we can all be proud of what we have already achieved together.

And of course, I would like to thank you, dear athletes. What a sight it is to see you all parading together! What a rare and precious moment you have given us! And even though the Games cannot solve every problem, even though discrimination and conflicts are not about to disappear, tonight you have reminded us how beautiful humanity is when we come together.

And when you return to the Olympic Village, you will be sending a message of hope to the whole world: that there is a place where people of every nationality, every culture and every religion can live together. You’ll be reminding us: it is possible.

For the next 16 days, you will be the best version of humanity. You’ll remind us that the emotions of sport form a universal language that we all share. Until the 11th of August, we’ll be by your side.

Dear athletes,

Your defeats will be our defeats. Your victories will be our victories. Your emotions… will be our emotions.

We can’t wait. To live it all with you. The joy, the tears, and the love you will put in each moment. Thank you for being here. You made it! Bravo! I know what it means. I know what it took. I know the path you have followed to be here. Paris will give back to you. It’s the city of love…and for the next sixteen days, it is your city.

Together with the Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, we want every sport and every Olympian to make this city their home. So, welcome home. Welcome to Paris. Welcome to your moment in history. Live it. Love it! And carry us with you! The world is on your side.

Of course, tonight, I have a special word for the French team. 571 of you have qualified for the biggest competition of your lives. From now to the 11th of August, 68 million French people will get behind you. When you take your place on the start line, a whole country will hold its breath. When you win a gold Olympic medal your whole country will be proud. And when you cry with joy on the highest step of the Olympic podium, the whole of France will cry with you.

With each of your victories, France will come together. With each of your victories, France will show its collective pride. With each of your victories, the French republic will live anew.

Dear athletes of France, Dear athletes of the world, We love you! And from this moment forth, Paris 2024 is yours.

Mr President of the Republic, Heads of state and government leaders, Mr President of the International Olympic Committee, Members of the Olympic family, Madame Mayor of Paris, Lovers of the Games in France and around the world!

Welcome to the Olympic Games of Paris 2024!