PV Sindhu and Achanta Sharath Kamal held the tricolour high as the boat carrying the Indian contingent passed through river Seine during the Parade of Nations at the Opening Ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games on Friday. (More Sports News)
Badminton star Sindhu and table tennis veteran Kamal were chosen as the flag-bearers of India's 117-member strong contingent for the Paris Olympics. The duo was at the front of the boat with the Indian flag waving high amid heavy rain. India shared its boat with two other nations: Iran and Indonesia.
Sindhu is one of India's two multiple times Olympic medalist while the seven-time Commonwealth Games champion and double Asian Games gold medalist Kamal is representing the country in his fifth and final Summer Games.
Even though the total strength of the India contingent is 117, the Opening Ceremony boat had only 78 people including the officials as others had not yet reached.
The organisers of the 2024 Paris Olympics made history by hosting the Opening Ceremony outdoors for the first time in the storied history of the Games. Pop stars like Lady Gaga and Aya Nakamura also dazzled the audiences with their performances at the Opening Ceremony.
The ceremony is being held amid tight security with organisers employing heavy measures to ensure the safety of the Games.
The capital's streets are blocked off, squadrons of police are on patrol and imposing metal-fence security barriers have been erected like an iron curtain on both sides of the River Seine. Up to 45,000 police and gendarmes as well as 10,000 soldiers have been deployed for Olympic security.
Earlier, hours before the Opening Ceremony, Widespread and “criminal” acts of vandalism including arson attacks hit France's high-speed rail network leading to hundreds of thousands of people getting stranded.
