From this Wednesday May 8, day of arrival of the flame in Marseille (Bouches-du-Rhône), on July 26, the day of opening ceremony in Paris, the atmosphere will be festive on the roads of France. Although the flame is placed under very high protection, the general public will be able to approach the two convoys which will crisscross the living areas and the largest iconic French sites. Every afternoon, activities will take place in the stopover towns, before the lighting of the cauldron, around 7:30 p.m.
One relay, two convoys
For 69 days, the journey of the flame will travel through 65 territories, including 6 overseas, and pass through more than 400 towns. The principle will be the same in each department. On a typical day, the flame will stop at seven points (more in Île-de-France), but through two convoys, for logistical reasons.
On average, the “engagement” convoy, which will set off at 8 a.m., will connect the four largest living areas, to end its journey in the stage city. The “agile” convoy, which begins its route at 9:30 a.m., connects three iconic sites, sometimes difficult to access.
If two lanterns are used, the torches are never lit in two different places and the two relays operate alternately. One hundred porters take turns every day, mainly on the “engagement” convoy, the “agile” convoy being limited to a few people. The day will end with a journey through the stopover town, until the lighting of the cauldron at 7:30 p.m.
A flame under very close surveillance
A sacred fire to be protected very closely. The Olympic flame will be at the center of an impressive security system from its arrival in France in Marseille this Wednesday, May 8 until the lighting of the Olympic cauldron during the opening ceremony on July 26. Six thousand police officers and gendarmes will be mobilized on Wednesday in the city of Bouches-du-Rhône when the “Belem” arrives in the Old Port, with swimmer Florent Manaudou in the role of the first torchbearer on French soil.
The 2012 Olympic champion in the 50m freestyle and the 10,000 and a few other people who will carry the Olympic torch will be surrounded by a “bubble” made up of nearly 200 members of the police. CRS or mobile gendarmes will be responsible for opening the roads, and if necessary pushing back demonstrators who would like to disrupt the torch relaybefore the arrival of motorcycles and especially the 18 “runners”.
These latter, there also police officers and gendarmeswill form a security cordon around the torch bearer and will have to ensure that the public does not get too close, or even to stop anyone who tries to attack the Olympic fire.
To this system, we must also add elite gendarmes from the GIGN, kept in reserve, and law enforcement officers assigned in the fight against drones. Finally, the last category to get as close as possible to the flame: its guardians. Soldiers, police officers, gendarmes or members of civil security constitute this body responsible for watching over the lit fire day and night. at the ancient site of Olympia on April 16. Three guards boarded the “Belem”, with a spare flame, and never lost sight of it.
What do the authorities fear? If the terrorist risk is not completely ruled out, the Ministry of the Interior especially fears mobilizations of activists who would try to take advantage of the global media echo of a flame that has been extinguished, stolen, disrupted or simply stopped. “It is not so much the flame that interests them, as exposing their demands on television,” said the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin. Whose services have sifted through the CVs of all the torch bearers.
Animations throughout the route
Even if security is extreme, the public will be able to approach the convoys and participate in activities, orchestrated by the sponsors of the flame, the Banque Populaire, the Caisse d’Epargne and Coca-Cola. All have tanks on the “engagement” convoy.
The public will be able to try to score basketball hoops and handball goals, installed on the float in the colors of the Savings Bank, in order to trigger donations to local associations. The Savings Bank and the Banque Populaire will also allow spectators to try their luck to win places for the Olympic and Paralympic Games events, via an application.
An active panel in each stopover city
Several events are planned in the stopover town, from 3 p.m., while the arrival of the last porter of the day is expected around 7:30 p.m., with a guard of honor. The communities and sponsors of the torch relay will thus animate an active panel (left as a legacy by Paris 2024), via demonstrations of urban sports and various shows.
In the 150 m2 Savings Bank space, dedicated to the team sports that the bank supports, initiations to basketball and handball will be offered. They will be supervised by coaches from the federations, on a specially designed field. The Banque Populaire stand will be dedicated to the sea and the preservation of the oceans. Visitors will be able to photograph themselves as a crew with a torch, on the deck of a boat, learn sailor knots or even challenge Armel Le Cléac’h, the skipper of “Banque Populaire XI”on a simulator.
The 300 m2 Coca-Cola village will offer a “musical and festive atmosphere”, a drinks tasting and numerous activities. Spectators will be able to take a photo of themselves with the torch. Concerts will also be organized in six cities, in Marseille (this Wednesday, May 8), Rennes (Saturday, June 1), Saint-Étienne (Tuesday, June 21), Paris, Place de la République (Monday, July 15), La Courneuve (Thursday, July 25) and Bobigny (Tuesday August 27), for the Paralympic relay.
