The flame for the 2024 Paris Olympics arrived on French soil on Wednesday, May 8, at the port of Marseille on board a 19th-century sailing ship. Olympic gold medal-winning swimmer Florent Manaudou carried the torch from the deck of the Belem, a three-masted vessel which had carried it from Greece.
The ship sailed into Marseille's Old Port (Vieux-Port) at the backdrop of the French national anthem, La Marseillaise, echoing from the embankment and a French Air force fly over with planes first drawing the five Olympic rings and then the red-blue-white colors of the nation's flag.
Tens of thousands cheered the arrival at the cordoned-off stage area on the shore as thousands of others were waving from balconies and windows overlooking the festivities. The torch was lit in Greece last month before it was officially handed to France. It left Athens aboard a ship named Belem, which was first used in 1896, and spent twelve days at sea.
President Emmanuel Macron met with the French Olympic athletes who have sailed on Belem with the Olympic torch upon his arrival to Marseille. "With the arrival of the flame, the country enters the games," Macron said at the city’s Olympic Marina.
Paris 2024 Olympics Organizing Committee president Tony Estanguet said the return of the Olympic Games to France was cause for a "fantastic celebration."
"As a former athlete, I know how important the start of a competition is. That is why we chose Marseille, because it's definitely one of the cities most in love with sports," added Estanguet, a former Olympic canoeing star with gold medals from the 2000, 2004 and 2012 Games.
The safety of visitors and residents has been a top priority for authorities in Marseille, France's second-largest city with nearly a million residets. About 8,000 police officers have been deployed around the harbor.
Thousands of firefighters and bomb disposal squads have been positioned around the city along with maritime police and anti-drone teams patrolling the city's waters and its airspace. "It's a monumental day and we have been working hard for visitors and residents of Marseille to enjoy this historical moment," said Yannick Ohanessian, the city's deputy mayor.
The torch relay will start on Thursday in Marseille, before heading to Paris through iconic places across the country, from the world-famous Mont Saint-Michel to D-Day landing beaches in Normandy and the Versailles Palace.