FILE PHOTO: The Olympic rings are seen in front of the Hotel de Ville City Hall in Paris, France, March 14, 2023. REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes/File Photo
PARIS (Reuters) - Khalid Driouech can't wait - the 60-year-old Seine riverboat captain is one of 94 set to transport the 10,500 Olympic athletes down the river during the opening ceremony for the Paris 2024 Games on the evening of July 26.
A working captain on the river since 2010, Driouech heard a couple of months ago that he would be taking part in the six-kilometre floating parade from the Pont d'Austerlitz to the Pont d'Iena, before the finale at the Trocadero.
"It's a great pleasure and a unique opportunity. I don't know when we'll have the chance to organise the Games in Paris (again)," Driouech told Reuters.
"You have no idea how happy I am to be taking part in these Olympic Games, which is something 67 million French people would like to do. It's a great source of pride, and I'm happy to be representing my nation."
The Vedettes de Paris company for which Driouech works has signed a contract to provide four electric-powered boats for the opening ceremony.
The crew have already taken part in two training sessions and a first test run last summer. A second, full-scale test is scheduled for May 27.
"The training is more about safety than anything else. On D-Day, there's a protocol to follow," Driouech said.
"Our sailors are trained to navigate in these specific conditions," Julie Devernay, deputy general manager of the Vedettes de Paris company, told Reuters.
Driouech is well aware of the security risks during the ceremony, which will be attended by 326,000 people and for which 45,000 law enforcement officers will be mobilised.
"We're apprehensive, given what's going on in the world, about terrorist acts, yes. But frankly I have confidence in national security," he said.
"We're all aware, I think, in France and elsewhere, in the current complicated geopolitical context, of the risk of an attack," added Devernay.
The boats will be stored in a warehouse for a week before the opening ceremony, for bomb clearance.
President Emmanuel Macron has also said the ceremony could be moved elsewhere in case of a high attack alert.
"One of our fears today is that this ceremony will be cancelled, because we've already spent a lot of time and energy on it," Devernay said.
"We think it's going to be a unique event and if it were to be cancelled, for reasons we would otherwise understand, it would be a huge disappointment."
For now though, Driouech loves feeling the tension rise every time he passes the Olympic Games countdown clock below the Eiffel Tower, just a few dozen metres from his boarding dock.
"There's impatience and excitement," he said.
Each riverboat captain will know on D-Day which delegation they are responsible for transporting - and Driouech dreams of leading the French.
"I'd love to see all our athletes up close, like (judoka) Teddy Riner or the soccer players," he said.
(Writing by Julien Pretot; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
