The French Minister of Sports, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, has affirmed that there is currently "no terror threat" specifically targeting the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
She further confirmed that the opening ceremony, set to take place on the River Seine, remains the central plan that the organisers are working on.
"We monitor the terror threat with all necessary vigilance. At present, there is no specific terror threat targeting the Olympic Games," she stated during an interview on France 2.
Following the terror attack on a concert hall near Moscow on 22 March that claimed 144 lives, the French Government raised the Vigipirate security plan to its maximum level – just four months ahead of the Games.
When pressed about whether or not there was a back-up plan for the opening ceremony on 26 July, the Minister said: "This ceremony on the Seine is our central plan […]. I believe there is an element of discretion that must be respected. Just because we aren't speaking about a plan B, doesn't mean we aren't preparing for it."
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As regards the postponement of technical tests for the opening ceremony on the Seine, originally scheduled for 8 April, the Minister referred to it as a "non-event."
"This decision was made three or four weeks ago because different dates were possible – 8 April, or 27 May. We cancelled the 8 April date. The rehearsal will now be on 27 May, and there will be a dress rehearsal on 17 June," she explained.
"We took into consideration the currently high levels of the Seine, flooding, and currents that would have made this particular test difficult."
