Legendary rapper Snoop Dogg carried the Olympic torch through Paris ahead of the opening ceremony tonight.
The Paris 2024 Games will officially launch on Friday evening, with more than 10,000 athletes gathering on boats on the River Seine for the opening ceremony.
Snoop Dogg, whose real name is Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr, was one of many stars to carry the torch, along with French actress Laetitia Casta and French rapper MC Solaar.
He was photographed running his weightlifting leg on Friday as Olympic officials rushed to finish last-minute preparations to ensure the ceremony – and the Games – went ahead as planned.
The 52-year-old, dressed in white, was all smiles as he carried the flame through the city in mounting anticipation ahead of the launch.
Snoop Dogg carried the Olympic torch in Paris ahead of the opening ceremony on Friday night
The rapper, who will be part of NBC’s coverage of the Games, was all smiles as he walked with the torch in hand.
Behind the scenes, officials have been working hard to finish last-minute preparations for the show.
Snoop Dogg will also contribute to NBC’s Olympics coverage and detailed his love for the Games in a statement to the network in December.
“I grew up watching the Olympics and I’m excited to see the incredible athletes perform at their best in Paris,” he said ahead of the ceremony. “It’s a celebration of skill, dedication and the pursuit of greatness.”
The artist is originally from the Los Angeles area, where the 2028 Olympic Games will be held.
She showed her support for Team USA last month when she attended the track and field trials.
The rapper even went on a track run in Eugene, Oregon and met up with Sha’Carri Richardson before she sealed Olympic qualification.
During the parade, meanwhile, there will be more than 3,000 artists at the ceremony alongside delegations and passengers on the ships.
The pre-ceremony press conference was cancelled as directors had to leave to make last-minute preparations and there were concerns about the amount of rain in the city.
The parade will end in front of the Trocadero, where the rest of the performances and elements of the Olympic protocol will take place.
Although the floating parade was originally planned as a popular festival along the banks, French police have intervened and for security reasons most spectators will be assigned to one area or given seats in fenced-off areas for the ceremony.
The pre-ceremony press conference was cancelled as the directors had to take time off to make last-minute preparations.
“I grew up watching the Olympics and I’m excited to see the incredible athletes bring their A-game to Paris,” Snoop Dogg said before the haul.
Each country will debut its athletes and one of its most prolific names will hold its national or regional flag at the start of the ceremony.
Traditionally, Greece debuts first as a nod to where the Olympics originated, with the host country appearing last.
The Olympic anthem will then be played after the host country’s head of state announces the start of the Games.
The iconic Olympic flame will then be brought forward for the lighting of the main torch, marking the culmination of the opening ceremony, as well as the release of doves, symbolising peace between all countries.
More rain is expected in Paris today, but organizers hope it will hold off until after the ceremony concludes.
Meanwhile, fears are growing that Moscow could be behind a “massive arson attack” that has caused chaos on France’s rail network after a suspected Russian spy was arrested earlier this week.
Kirill Gryaznov, 40, was arrested on Wednesday and charged with working “with a foreign power to try to incite hostilities in France” after being identified as working for the FSB, Vladimir Putin’s domestic intelligence agency.
Gryaznov, who denies wrongdoing, is reported to have boasted of turning the start of the Paris Olympics into “an opening ceremony like no other”.
Fears are growing that Moscow could be behind a “massive arson attack” that has caused chaos on France’s rail network
Last night, just hours before the procession along the Seine, fires broke out at key facilities, paralysing trains and affecting some 800,000 passengers.
Eurostar is advising passengers not to travel today after its rail services between London and Paris were disrupted by acts of vandalism.
reported, with several trains cancelled and others diverted.
An airport on the Swiss-French border was also evacuated and closed due to a bomb alert, French police said.