While team sports took centre stage Thursday on the eve of the Opening Ceremony of the Paris Olympics, the first individual event of the 2024 Games – archery – drew all eyes to the Invalides on the banks of the River Seine. French rugby star Antoine Dupont’s Les Bleus entered their second day of play as the French women’s football team led by Hervé Renard took to the field to fight for their first major title. And the Olympic torch continued its journey around Paris with a stopover in the city's northeastern suburb of Seine-Saint-Denis. Read our liveblog to see how the day's events unfolded at the Paris Olympics. All times are Paris time (GMT+2).
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10:58pm: Rugby sevens: Australia beat US 18-0
Australia beat US 18-0 to join Fiji in the semi-finals
10:44pm: Nadal injury brings doubt for Olympics, says coach Moya
Rafael Nadal has suffered a thigh injury to put his participation at the Paris Olympics in doubt, his coach Carlos Moya said on Thursday.
The 14-time French Open champion is scheduled to play in the singles and in the men's doubles alongside rising star and fellow Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz at Roland Garros.
"He had some discomfort yesterday (Wednesday) morning," Moya told Spanish radio.
The 38-year-old Nadal did not train on Thursday, which Moya said was "the most responsible thing to do".
10:10pm: Destination Paris show: Day-1 Games rundown
FRANCE 24 brings you the highlights of matches across various disciplines that took place Thursday in Paris on the eve of France’s highly anticipated Olympics opening ceremony.
Read moreSouth Korea's Lim Si-hyeon smashes the archery world record
9:36pm: Basketball star Griner says she 'feels safe in France'
American basketball star Brittney Griner, who spent nine months in a Russian jail, said she feels "fine and safe in France" on her return to Europe for the Olympic Games.
Griner, who was detained in a Moscow airport in February 2022 on drug charges, was released from prison in December that year in a prisoner exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.
Now the 33-year-old Griner, who stands at an imposing 2.06m, will again compete in Europe and appeared relaxed as the US team took part in their first Olympics training session in Lille on Thursday.
"I'm fine. Everyone wonders what it's like for me to come back here after everything I've been through, but I feel good and safe in France, so I'm just looking forward to playing."
9:33pm: World Cup holders Spain win women's Olympic football opener
Reigning Ballon d'Or Aitana Bonmati scored one goal and helped create another as World Cup holders Spain came from behind to beat Japan 2-1 in their first game of the women's Olympic football tournament on Thursday.
Spain are making their Olympic women's football debut at the Paris Games but are leading contenders to win gold after their World Cup triumph in Australia and New Zealand last year.
9:18pm: Canada tops New Zealand to open Olympic women's football after drone scandal
Evelyne Viens scored in the 79th minute to give reigning Olympic champion Canada a 2-1 victory over New Zealand on Thursday in a match that was overshadowed by allegations of drone surveillance at the Ferns' practice.
The Group A match in Saint-Etienne was controversial before the start when two Canada staffers were sent home early for their alleged involvement with drones that were reported over a pair of New Zealand's practices.
Canada played the opener without coach Bev Priestman, who stepped away from the team for the match to show accountability. However, she was adamant at practice Wednesday that she had no knowledge of the drone use.
FIFA has opened a disciplinary inquiry into the matter, and Canada Soccer launched an independent review.
8:55pm: Jill Biden meets with US Olympic athletes in Paris
US First Lady Jill Biden arrived in Paris a day before the Summer Games' opening ceremony on the Seine River and spoke to the families of US athletes before visiting the competitors themselves on their practice fields.
“As they leap, and sprint, and turn, America’s athletes aren’t only propelled by the years of sweat and sacrifice they’ve poured into their training,” she said in front of a giant USA cutout coloured with the American flag. “Your love is also there, pushing them further, helping them go faster, lifting them higher as they reach for gold.”
After her speech at the residence of the US ambassador to France, Denise Bauer, Biden headed to a training center in the northern Paris suburbs to visit with athletes on the US women’s rugby team and the track and field team. She hugged some of them, took pictures and helped in a track drill where athletes hand off the baton.
8:47pm: Olympics serves as reminder Ukraine still exists, says sports minister
Ukrainian Sports Minister Matviy Bidnyi says "the Russians wanted his country to cease to exist" but instead over two years on from the invasion, "the opposite has happened" at the Paris Olympics.
"Ukrainians are here, Ukraine is participating in the Olympic Games," he said on the eve of the opening ceremony.
Bidnyi, who replaced Vadym Gutzeit as sports minister last November, said sport's greatest show spread over a fortnight in Paris – and televised around the globe – would for Ukraine "primarily be a big screen to the world".
Despite heavily disrupted preparations, with some athletes leaving Ukraine, others being killed and training facilities destroyed since Russia invaded on February 24, 2022, Ukraine is still sending a 143-strong team to Paris.
8:32pm: Norwegians issue cheeky challenge to French over Olympic food
The Norwegian delegation engaged in some good-natured ribbing of their hosts over comments about food quality and small portions at the athletes' Olympic village, claiming to have more medals in recent years than the French for their cuisine.
"When you travel to France you expect that the food will be very, very good. I'd like to point out that Norway also has a performance culture when it comes to food," Norway's chef de mission Tore Oevrebroe told reporters on Thursday with a glint in his eye.
"We have more medals (for food) since 1987 than the French have, and that means that we come with higher expectations," he added.
Used to consuming thousands of calories a day to keep themselves going, some athletes complained that they were struggling to eat enough in the village. But Oevrebroe said that they were working with the various Olympic committees to improve things.
"The quantity is no longer a problem, (but) there's been a little bit to say about the quality, but it's getting better and better every day," he said.
8:05pm: Israel warns France of Iran-backed plot
Israel's foreign minister warned his French counterpart on Thursday of a potential Iranian-backed plot to target Israeli athletes and tourists during the Paris Olympic Games.
Israel's military campaign in the Palestinian-run Gaza Strip, launched in retaliation against Hamas militants' deadly cross-border raid last October, has inflamed tensions in the Middle East and stoked security concerns for the Summer Olympics.
"We currently have assessments regarding the potential threat posed by Iranian terrorist proxies and other terrorist organisations who aim to carry out attacks against members of the Israeli delegation and Israeli tourists during the Olympics," Israel Katz told Stéphane Séjourné in a letter seen by Reuters.
Katz did not detail any specific intelligence or threat against the Games.
8:00pm: Equestrian federation spells out horse welfare reforms in wake of horse-whipping video
The organization that oversees equestrian competition at the Olympics spelled out a series of reforms for horse welfare on the eve of the Paris Games and in the wake of an abuse case involving one of the sport's best riders.
Executives from the Federation for Equestrian Sports, or FEI, held a roundtable discussion Thursday in which they outlined a comprehensive plan already in place to improve horse safety. It took on greater focus after three-time Olympic gold medalist Charlotte Dujardin withdrew this week after video emerged showing her repeatedly whipping a horse.
“It’s an additional, I would say, justification, for me that we are doing the right thing by creating this plan,” FEI president Ingmar De Vos said. “I think it clearly illustrates that this plan that we have now created and the philosophy of ‘Be a Guardian’ is really what we need.”
The federation launched its “Be a Guardian” initiative last week, calling on members of the equestrian riding and training community to embrace their roles caring for horses. It also came with the development of the Equine Welfare Strategy Action plan, highlighting six priority areas and 30 recommendations on improvements.
7:29pm: 'Dust everywhere' at Olympic judo venue, two days before start
France's judo boss on Thursday criticised conditions at the Paris Olympics venue which will host the sport, saying there was "dust everywhere" two days before the start of competition.
It comes after the mats at the Champ-de-Mars Arena in the French capital were deemed to be too bouncy.
"That's fixed," said Stephane Nomis, president of France's judo federation, adding: "One of the biggest problems is cleaning because there is dust everywhere."
He added: "Our judokas fight barefoot and in kimonos... we have to find a way so that there is less dust entering the rooms."
Judo is one of the host country's biggest sports and they are expected to be prominent among the medals on home soil.
7:20pm: French sprinter will wear a cap during Olympic opening ceremony after hijab dispute is resolved
French sprinter Sounkamba Sylla will be allowed to participate in the opening ceremony at the Paris Olympics wearing a cap to cover her hair, an agreement reached with the French Olympic Committee after Sylla said she was barred because of her hijab.
During Friday's opening ceremony, which includes a parade by athletes on the Seine River, the French delegation will wear tailor-made uniforms by the French luxury brand Berluti, which is owned by the LVMH Group.
“In consultation with the French Athletics Federation, the French Ministry of Sports, Paris 2024, and Berluti, discussions were held with Sounkamba Sylla,” the French Olympic Committee said Thursday in a statement. “She was offered the possibility of wearing a cap during the parade, which she accepted.”
France enforces a strict principle of “ laïcité,” loosely translated as “secularism”. On Wednesday, the president of the French Olympic Committee had said that French Olympians are bound by the secular principles that apply to public sector workers in France separating state and church, which includes a ban on hijabs.
6:44pm: Workers go on strike at five-star Paris hotel where IOC members are staying for Olympics
Workers went on strike Thursday at the five-star hotel in Paris where members of the International Olympic Committee are staying, walking out just a day before the opening ceremony of the Games.
According to the major French union CGT, the IOC paid the hotel where staffers were striking, Hôtel du Collectionneur, €22 million ($23.88 million) for exclusive use of the facility.
The Paris division of the CGT posted a video on social media appearing to be from inside the hotel, showing around a dozen staff lining a corridor. Employees held signs reading, “No 13th month, no Olympics!," “Luxury hotel, poverty wages” and “Give us back our social benefits." Many companies in France pay their workers a bonus in December known as the “13th month".
The CGT said the employees were demanding a pay increase, having not received a raise for seven years. The strike comes after a fifth round of negotiations failed Wednesday.
6:39pm: Olympics chance for USA to 'come together', says flagbearer Gauff
Tennis star Coco Gauff on Thursday said the Olympics were an opportunity for Americans to "come together" during a turbulent presidential race back home, as she prepares to carry the US flag at the opening ceremony in Paris.
With increasing division in US politics, Gauff believes the Olympics could help people put the "political turmoil" to the back of their minds.
6:17pm: France prepares to welcome top guests at Paris Olympics
France is preparing to welcome dozens of heads of state and government, royalty and US First Lady Jill Biden for the Summer Olympics that begin with a dazzling ceremony on the river Seine on Friday.
No Russian official representing Vladimir Putin's government has been invited due to the Kremlin's war against Ukraine, while an Israeli delegation will be heavily protected as tensions rage over Israel's continuing bombardment of Gaza following the October 7 attack by Hamas.
The guests also include UK PM Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Finland's President Alexander Stubb and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis among others.
There has been no confirmation that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will attend the Olympics opening ceremony.
5:51pm: A look at Paris's Invalides, where archery competition is taking place
5:27pm: Dazzling Fiji down France in Olympic Rugby Sevens
Double Olympic champions Fiji showed again they are the team to beat in Rugby Sevens as they powered to a pulsating 19-12 win Thursday over the hosts at a packed Stade de France just outside Paris.
Despite boasting 15-a-side superstar Antoine Dupont in their ranks, France had little answer to Fiji's power, pace, bruising tackling and trademark flair.
Both teams were already into the quarter-finals, where France will meet Argentina and Fiji will face Ireland.
5:23pm: Rugby Sevens: Baker scores four tries, sending US to quarter-finals
Winger Perry Baker scored four tries as the United States beat Uruguay 33-7 on Thursday to secure an Olympic rugby sevens quarter-final against Australia, who beat Argentina 22-14 to top their pool.
Baker, twice world Sevens player of the year and appearing in his third Olympics, then got his third, before belying his 38 years with a lung-busting 70-metre run for his fourth at the death, helping send the US through as one of two best third-placed teams.
4:35pm: Argentine President Milei travels to France to meet Macron after outcry over racist football chants
Argentine President Javier Milei arrived Thursday in Paris, his office said, where he is expected to meet French President Emmanuel Macron after tensions escalated between their countries over the Argentine football team's derogatory post-match chants about French players.
Read moreArgentina’s Milei to meet Macron as tensions rise over racist football chants
4:28pm: New Olympic disciplines on show at Paris exhibition
With the Paris Olympics about to get underway, the French capital is also hosting an exhibition that celebrates the urban cultures and practices that have become Olympic disciplines in recent years.
SPOT 24 celebrates everything from freestyle BMX to surfing, skateboarding and breakdancing.
3:49pm: Equestrian federation chief confident sport will remain in Olympics
The International Equestrian Federation is confident the sport will remain on the Olympic programme despite several cases of horse abuse, FEI president Ingmar de Vos said on Thursday.
The FEI on Tuesday suspended six-times Olympic medallist Charlotte Dujardin over her training methods, before a video showed the dressage rider whipping a horse's legs multiple times, sparking a broader debate about equestrian sports.
1:48pm: Dressel has no confidence in fairness of swimming after Chinese doping scandal
Seven-time Olympic swimming gold medallist Caeleb Dressel said Thursday he has no confidence in the ability of authorities to ensure a fair contest in the pool at the Paris Games.
Swimming has been engulfed in a doping row following revelations in April that 23 Chinese swimmers failed drugs tests ahead of the Tokyo Games in 2021 but were not sanctioned.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) accepted the conclusion of Chinese officials that the case was caused by food contamination at a hotel, triggering strong criticism from the US anti-doping body USADA and several top swimmers.
1:47pm: Olympic archery opens with S. Korea's Lim breaking records
The first competition at one of Paris's postcard Olympic venues – the lawn in front of the gilded dome of France's military museum Les Invalides, where Napoleon is entombed – opened on Thursday with the first new records made at the Games.
In an event in which South Koreans have won nine of the last 10 Olympic golds, the records the 20-year-old Lim shot down as she scored 694 out of a maximum of 720 belonged to her compatriots.
1:35pm: Olympic sailing: Mediterranean seawater given all clear in Marseille
Water quality for the sailing due to take place off Marseille has been given the all clear, Olympic organisers said, despite officials in the French city banning swimming from beaches earlier in the week as a result of heavy rains.
Although swimmers were told not to swim on beaches in the vicinity of the marina where the sailors launch from, the water quality did not fall below the levels stipulated by governing body World Sailing, a Games spokesperson said on Thursday.
"Water quality here inside the marina was perfect, because we built a filter to stop the garbage ... Outside on the sea it was also perfect," the spokesperson said at the venue, where sailors were preparing for racing from July 28.
- An updated listing of the Olympics results can be found here.
(FRANCE 24 with AP, AFP and Reuters)
