PARIS: The Sultanate of Oman’s delegation took part in the historic opening ceremony of the 33rd Summer Olympic Games, Paris 2024, on Friday at the Seine River in the heart of the French capital city, Paris.
The four-hour spectacular event was attended by top dignitaries including French President Emmanuel Macron, numerous heads and representatives of countries presence of Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee, and a huge public audience.
Oman’s Sheikh Khalid Mohammed al Zubair, Chairman of the Oman Olympic Committee (OOC) and head of Oman’s delegation to the Paris 2024 Olympics participated in the official opening ceremony. Also present were Basil bin Ahmed al Rawas, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Youth for Sports and Youth Affairs along with Ambassador Ahmed bin Mohammed al Oraimi, Oman's Ambassador to France, along with several members of the Oman Olympic Committee's Board of Directors.
Oman also made a notable appearance at the official opening ceremony through the participation of its sports delegation members who proudly wore traditional Omani dress and carried the Omani flags.
The Omani delegation shared the same boat with delegations from New Zealand, Uganda, and Pakistan.
The flag bearers were athlete Ali Anwar al Balushi, who is making his Olympics debut and female sprinter Mazoon al Alawi, who is participating in the Olympics for her third consecutive time, and had the honour of carrying the Omani flag during the opening ceremony as the athletes paraded via boats.
“This is a historic moment for me to be chosen as the national delegation flag bearer. I enjoyed historic and pivotal moments in my sports career and my joy was great after qualifying directly for the Olympics but it became even more interesting when I was chosen to carry the flag of my beloved country in this high profile sporting event. I would like to extend my sincere thanks and appreciation to the officials of Oman Olympic Committee for selecting me and my fellow runner Mazoon al Alawi," sprinter Ali said.
Mazoon al Alawi expressed her pride as well for raising the Omani flag during the official ceremony of Paris 2024 Olympics.
“I had participated in the Olympics twice before but this participation was different from the others as I had the honour of being one of the flag bearers for Oman. The atmosphere at the opening ceremony was incredibly enjoyable with the rain adding extra beauty to the event. I did not expect the official opening of the Olympics to be like this as we are used to it being held in main stadiums. However, it was a fantastic move by the organisers to hold it outside the main stadium where we were on a boat," she added.
Mazoon will begin her action at 100 metres on August 2 at the France De Stadium. “I will deliver my outmost technical efforts in the forthcoming event,” she added.
Opening ceremony
The official opening ceremony of the 2024 Olympics featured various segments with a spectacular show. The ceremony under the rainy weather lasted for about four hours at the Seine River.
The athletes boat parade route for this Olympics differed from previous versions as it merged the athletes' entry procession with diverse artistic segments. Athletes from around the world traveled through Paris from east to west on more than 85 boats and ferries proudly raising their national flags during a six-kilometre-long boat parade.
Over 500,000 people enjoyed the ceremony live from dedicated viewing areas authorised by the organising committee as well as from balconies and apartments overlooking the river creating a truly delightful celebration.
The ceremony featured several French sports stars and legends, including French football star Zinedine Zidane, alongside other athletes such as Americans Carl Lewis and Serena Williams, Romanian Nadia Comaneci, and Spaniard Rafael Nadal.
Shooter Said ready for training
Shooter Said al Khatri from the national shooting team begins his official training today, Sunday at the Châteauroux Shooting Center. The organising technical committee has allocated the morning period for all competitors in the Men’s Trap Shooting event to practice on the main range providing a valuable opportunity for shooters to train and acclimatise to the range before the official competitions start from tomorrow, Monday and Tuesday.
The domestic shooter will begin his action at the qualifying rounds of the Men’s Trap event. “I had excellent training sessions over the past few days through my early arrival to France. It was a remarkable training experience alongside other shooters from various countries. This is my debut Olympics experience and it is a significant motivation to deliver my best technical to honour my beloved country in this historic event. The presence at the shooting ranges in advance helped him greatly to the competitive atmosphere and get used to the weapons. Also, I am more adaptable to weather conditions and other natural factors. I am looking forward to registering top records,” he concluded.
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
