Achanta Sharath Kamal, PV Sindhu lead Indian contingent at historic Paris Olympics 2024 opening ceremony at Seine River

Veteran table tennis star Achantha Sharath Kamal and ace badminton player PV Sindhu were the flagbearers as India joined the glittering and momentous opening ceremony, labelled as the Parade of Nations, of the Paris 2024 Olympics on the river Seine in Paris on Saturday.

The Indian men were clad in kurta bundi sets while the women wore matching saris, reflecting India’s tricolour flag. The outfits, which bore traditional ikat-inspired prints and Banarasi brocade, have been designed by Tarun Tahiliani.

For Sindhu, a two-time Olympic medallist, this is her third appearance at the Games. “I am super proud to be here at Olympic Village. This will be my third Olympics, and really excited for the competition to begin. At the same time, I will be the flag bearer for the Indian contingent and I am super proud… I will be holding the bigger flag at the opening ceremony and I hope, with the same excitement, I do well in the competition and get a medal back to India,” Sindhu told JioCinema ahead of the ceremony.

On the other hand, two-time Commonwealth Games singles Gold medalist, Sharath Kamal, who is set to participate in his fifth and final Olympics, added: “It’s been a moment that I’ve been dreaming and visualising about, for the last 3-4 months. I’m pretty excited that I’m going to live that moment and especially that I’m going to do that with PV Sindhu. So, it’s a fantastic moment, I would say.”

First-of-its-kind opening ceremony

This was the first time in the history of the Olympics that the opening ceremony was not conducted inside a stadium, as the traditional event was staged along the river Seine, which flows through the heart of the historic French capital.

In a first-of-its-kind ceremony, over 1000 athletes participating in the Games travelled on around 100 boats as they cruised through the Seine and passed through some of city’s iconic locations – Notre Dame, Pont des Arts, Pont Neuf and more. The floating parade began from the Austerlitz bridge beside the Jardin des Plantes and ended at the Trocadéro, where the remaining elements of Olympic protocol and final shows will take place.

At the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, India had sent their largest ever contingent, comprising 124 athletes. India scripted their best-ever show at the Games, bagging seven medals, which included a historic gold won by Neeraj Chopra in men’s javelin throw.

At the Paris Games, India sent 117 athletes – 70 men and 47 women – competing in 69 medal events across 16 sports – Archery, athletics, badminton, boxing, equestrian, golf, hockey, judo, rowing, sailing, shooting, swimming, table tennis and tennis. Tennis legend Rohan Bopanna, 44, is the oldest athlete in the contingent, while swimmer Dhinidhi Desinghu, 14, is the youngest.