The first delegates take their places for the parade; Airtight protection around the sea

At the end of the Ourcq canal, in the famous 19^e In a district of Paris, those expelled from the Seine seek the warmth of crowds in one of these fan zones organized by the town hall. Under the drizzling rain, a small piece of an Olympic Babel accidentally washed up there as needed. The Poff family, a couple and their two daughters, all hockey players, came from Stuttgart. They devour salad against the walls of this urban amphitheater made of pigeons. “Places on the river are very expensive. Ninety euros is too much for us today. Father said quietly.

Under her raincoat, Bailey Riddle of Saint-Louis, Missouri, disembarks with her partner and her son and lists the sports they’re going to watch: archery, beach volleyball, table tennis… Three women in yellow T-shirts. “Brazil” Defend their country’s colors and have fun all week. In the far distance, two Italians march with Italian flags and Phrygian caps.

Salome Fabre was from Toulouse, but Parisian by adoption. As this kind of incident happened, she came down from her apartment in the neighborhood. “It’s exciting”. He tells how, as a child, he practiced fencing, and the opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games are the only cultural events where his sport is talked about. “But for me, more than anything, She continues, The history of sports is important to me. Her values. The political battle that goes with it. » Between Czares and Stalingrad, Babel dreams of peace.