'Paris is ready' for 2024 Summer Olympic Games, organizers say

Tony Estanguet, president of the Paris 2024 Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, said at a press conference on Sunday that the French capital is ready for the coming Games.

"We are ready as we head into the final phase," Estanguet told reporters. "For as long as the closing ceremony hasn't finished, we need to remain vigilant. But today we are exactly where we would have dreamed of being a few years ago."

In his reply to CGTN Sports Scene's Greg Laffradi, Estanguet said that he's confident that the openning ceremony of the Games will be "a great moment of celebration."

"All the predictions are very positive for the weather on next Friday," Estanguet said. "So, you can be confident it will be a great moment of celebration."

The opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics will take place on Friday on the River Seine, where the outdoor Olympic swimming events will happen.

"All the indicators for the Seine are positive at this stage," Estanguet added. Both he and Anne Hidalgo, mayor of Paris, swam in the river last week to prove the quality of the water.

In the first Summer Olympic opening ceremony outside the main stadium, 6,000-7,000 athletes will sail down the Seine on 85 barges and boats. As many as 300,000 spectators are set to watch the parade from stands and on the river banks when another 200,000 will do so from the overlooking apartments.

"We've always tried to maintain as high a level of ambition as possible so that these Games make France shine," Estanguet said and reminded people that there are still about 4,000 tickets available for the opening ceremony.

Around 45,000 members of the French security forces are set to be on duty when the opening ceremony begins. Estanguet made it clear that “security was the number one priority for Paris 2024.”

"There's a balance to be found between top security, which is absolutely the priority," he said. "It's part of the objective to guarantee the security and to propose a fantastic celebration of the Games... But to have this kind of unique celebration, you also need to have a very, very strong security plan. And that's the case."