Paris set for its first Olympics in 100 years

'Games wide open' is nan motto for this year's Paris Olympics, which officially statesman connected Friday pinch nan opening ceremony.

It is nan first clip successful 100 years that nan French superior has hosted nan summertime Games, pinch nan mostly of nan events taking spot successful aliases astir nan city's astir iconic areas.

Friday's opening ceremonial will spot boats transportation athletes and dignitaries down 6km of nan River Seine, pinch room for 300,000 spectators.

Few specifications are known astir nan arena - though location has been speculation astir Celine Dion and Lady Gaga performing - pinch nan ceremony's creator head Thomas Jolly saying he wants to "show France successful each its diversity".

The Paris Games is nan first to execute gender parity among athletes, pinch 5,250 antheral and 5,250 female athletes group to compete.

With millions expected to be nan Games, Paris is making nan last touches for a Games it hopes will beryllium for illustration nary other.

French President Emmanuel Macron said earlier this week, external that nan state was "ready and we will beryllium fresh passim nan Games".

However, immoderate Parisians person utilized societal media to warn people, external astir issues specified arsenic overcrowding, value ostentation and difficulties successful getting astir nan city.

There is simply a immense information cognition successful place, pinch up to 5,000 police, soldiers and hired guards connected patrol astatine immoderate 1 time. The Seine - nan stream than runs done nan centre of Paris - has been fenced disconnected for nan opening ceremony, leaving residents needing QR codes to entree definite areas.

That has affected section businesses on nan Seine, leading to immoderate criticism,, external but French authorities say nan barricades will beryllium removed aft Friday's event.

The costs of this year's Games is expected to beryllium astir 9bn euros (£7.6bn), pinch nan organising committee promising to make it nan greenest Olympics successful history.

Only 2 arenas are caller and purpose-built - an aquatics centre and an arena for badminton and rhythmic gymnastics.

Other iconic venues specified arsenic nan Stade du France - nan nationalist stadium - and French Open tennis venue Roland Garros will big events, alongside historical sites specified arsenic nan Grand Palais and nan Place de la Concorde.

One of nan large concerns successful nan build-up was nan h2o value of nan Seine, which will big nan swimming limb of nan triathlon and open-water events.

Swimming successful nan stream was banned for a period because of nan h2o quality, pinch tests successful June still showing levels of E.coli supra nan precocious limits imposed by sports federations.

However, Paris politician Anne Hidalgo swam successful nan stream connected 17 July to effort to beryllium it was safe.

The h2o will beryllium tested regularly successful different areas earlier nan events.

There is only 1 caller arena astatine this year's Games - breaking, a style of creation that originated successful nan Bronx successful New York.

Some events person had tweaks, including men being eligible to compete successful creator synchronised swimming for nan first clip successful Olympic history, though nary person been selected for Paris.

The Games will besides beryllium nan last Olympics for immoderate of Britain's finest.

Two-time tennis golden medallist Andy Murray will end his career successful Paris, arsenic will Britain's astir successful gymnast, Max Whitlock.

Adam Peaty, three-time Olympic golden medallist successful nan pool, returns to nan Games aft taking a mental wellness break from nan sport.

On nan track, Katarina Johnson-Thompson will look to avenge her heartbreak from Tokyo 2021, erstwhile a calf wounded successful nan 200m led to her pulling retired of nan heptathlon.

But dressage rider Charlotte Dujardin will not beryllium there, withdrawing aft footage emerged of her "excessively" whipping a horse.

Elsewhere, Simone Biles, nan world's astir dressed up gymnast, returns aft her struggles successful Tokyo, while Stephen Curry features successful nan basketball.

Their American compatriots Sha'Carri Richardson and Noah Lyles will look to radiance connected nan track, while Jamaica's iconic Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce seeks to sign disconnected her career pinch yet different medal.

Russia and its state Belarus are banned from sending athletes to nan Games amid nan ongoing Russian penetration of Ukraine.

The 36 Russian and 24 Belarusian athletes who are successful Paris will compete arsenic Individual Neutral Athletes (INA), which intends location will beryllium nary nationalist anthems aliases flags connected display.

Those who are competing had to meet strict criteria group retired by nan International Olympic Committee, specified arsenic not actively supporting nan war, and past walk a vetting cheque by their nationalist federation and nan IOC.

The determination to let Russian and Belarusian nationals to compete has been criticised by some, but IOC president Thomas Bach defended nan decision.

Athletes gathered successful nan Olympic Village earlier this week pinch Bach, wearing scarves pinch nan connection "give bid a chance" connected them.

"You, nan Olympic athletes, are nan bid ambassadors of our time," Bach said.

"You will compete fiercely against each other. At nan aforesaid time, you are surviving peacefully together nether 1 roof, present successful nan Olympic Village.

"You are respecting nan aforesaid rules and astir importantly you are respecting each other.

"In this way, you are sending a resounding connection of bid from Paris to nan world."

Paris' eager opening ceremonial will beryllium nan first clip a summertime Olympics has begun extracurricular nan main athletics stadium.

It is expected to past conscionable nether 4 hours and will besides see nan charismatic opening of nan Games, carried retired by President Macron, and nan lighting of nan Olympic cauldron.

The national representing 100 of dancers successful nan ceremonial had threatened to onslaught complete pay, but French media reported it had been called off, external aft a caller offer.

The opening ceremonial originates astatine 19:30 CET (18:30 BST) connected Friday, 26 July.

It will beryllium shown unrecorded connected BBC One (from 17:45 BST), BBC iPlayer and nan BBC Sport website and app.

There will beryllium power sum connected BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds from 19:00 BST, arsenic good arsenic unrecorded matter sum connected nan BBC Sport website and app.

Rower Helen Glover and diver Tom Daley will beryllium flagbearers for Team GB. Other notable choices see tennis subordinate Coco Gauff and hoops fable LeBron James for nan United States and boxer Cindy Ngamba and taekwondo jock Yahya Al-Ghotany for nan exile team.

Although Friday is nan charismatic opening of nan Games, immoderate sports person already begun, specified arsenic men's rugby sevens and some men and women's football.

The men's shot sewage disconnected to a chaotic commencement erstwhile Morocco's 2-1 triumph complete Argentina took almost 4 hours to complete aft play was suspended aft crowd trouble.

But location leader Antoine Dupont enthralled nan Stade de France arsenic nan hosts qualified for nan rugby sevens quarter-finals.