PARIS: The ambitions of the Paris Olympics put them in danger and difficult for the police, but French security forces protected thousands of athletes and millions of fans – a display of “medals”. gold” according to Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin.
The two-week sporting event, which ended on Sunday, led to an unprecedented security operation in recent French history, with some 75,000 police, soldiers and private security on the opening night. the 26th of July.
There have been incidents in the past two weeks — an attack on the French track, an attacker in the men's 100m final — but nothing that has marred the overall event much to the relief of the organisers.
“These Olympics will include a big French medal and a big gold medal for the Ministry of the Interior and the security forces,” Darmanin said last week while visiting officials in Marseille in the south. France.
The sense of satisfaction and hope that came from his words reflected the pressure and the huge uncertainty that arose in the face of the game if the already developed resources in France were up to the task.
Their first test was the safety of the Olympic torch relay, going through 450 French cities and towns and overseas territories.
Then came the impromptu general election in July, followed by an unprecedented opening ceremony on the six-kilometer (four-mile) banks of the Seine that gave sleepless nights to of the regulator since its introduction in 2021.
Police guard the Seine River before the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics on July 26, 2024, in Paris. (AP)
In the end, there was nothing but heavy rain for the 300,000 ticketed spectators watching on the banks of the river, and the streets of the capital were lined with uniformed police.
“For those who have been on Earth, we have seen the journey of safety here. It's amazing,” Nicole Deal, head of security for Team USA, said on the day of the ceremony. “I've never seen (one) like this in another game.”
The two weeks of competition saw packed stadiums, with 743,000 people attending the stadium on one day on 30 July.
There were also other events from triathlons to running races on the streets of the capital.
Around one million people lined up for the men's and women's cycling race last August 3-4.
“There is no doubt that the French security services deserve a gold medal,” French criminologist and university professor Alain Bauer, a vocal critic of the open-air format, told AFP.
He said that it was from “extraordinary investment” and “necessary changes” that the organizers saw the reduction of the size of the opening ceremony due to pressure from the Ministry of the Interior.
After Russia was kicked out of the Games, French officials said they were planning to disrupt them, with France's cyber-security agency on high alert for attacks that could disrupt the organizing committee, tickets or the transportation.
The arrest of a 40-year-old man suspected of being a member of the Russian secret service on the night of the match caused a stir.
The war in Gaza, the threat from the Daesh group, and France's history of domestic Islamist terror plots and far-right extremism have also raised fears of a possible the attack can damage the party.
But not everyone saw the conservation action as a celebration.
Charities have complained of police crackdowns on the homeless, prostitutes and migrants ahead of the Games, while anti-Olympic protest groups say they are being prevented from exercising their democratic rights.
Around 45 activists from the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion were detained by police the day after the opening ceremony as they prepared to occupy a bridge over the Seine River in central Paris.
The group “Saccage 2024”, which has been running so-called “Toxic Tours” highlighting the negative aspects of the Games, said it was prevented from leading a group of around 20 people to the site north of Paris last week. .
About 30 riot police and four police cars stopped the tour and three of the group were taken to the local police station for questioning.
“No charges were filed against any of the people arrested at the end of the police detention, further evidence that this was a real attempt to intimidate,” the group wrote on Instagram.
