Wet, wet and wet - inclement weather makes its presence felt at the Games

Urban and youth oriented sports like skateboarding have been postponed till Monday. Some of the matches at Roland Garros were affected as well.

Spectators take shelter from the rain as the wet weather delays the start of play on the outside courts at the Roland-Garros Stadium at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, in Paris on July 27, 2024. (Photo | AFP)

If anything that is grabbing headlines at the Paris 2024 Games after the spectacular Opening Ceremony, it’s the rain. The weather had been wet, wet and wet. The ceremony on Friday bore the brunt of the inclement weather when it started to rain incessantly as it entered into its climax. Athletes’ transparent ponchos turned saviour and in the land of fashionable clothing lines as humble piece as a poncho stood out. Rain or more rain, spectators on Friday did not leave the banks of Seine. Some just stood there applauding the boatful of athletes, song and mirth of the stars.

There was no respite on Saturday either. It was pouring in the morning and rained almost throughout central France in Châteauroux where the shooting events are being held. Some of the outdoor events are being rescheduled. Urban and youth oriented sports like skateboarding have been postponed till Monday. Some of the matches at Roland Garros were affected as well.

First gold goes to China

India may not figure on the medal tally on Saturday, but just as the ambers of the spectacular Opening Ceremony was quietly dying, China won the first gold at the Olympics. Their young pair -- 19-year-old Sheng Lihao and 17-year-old Huang Yuting – lived up to their expectation and beat South Korea’s Keum Ji-hyeon and Park Hajun in a nail-biting final at the  Châteauroux Shooting Centre. Kazakhstan won their first medal when their mixed pair -- Aleksandra Le and Islam Satpayev -- won bronze.

When South was North Korea

It’s two of the most sensitive countries in the world. No one would want to mix their names. North is North and South is South and the two Koreas would have loved to be called just that. In a confusion during the Friday’s Opening Ceremony the two Koreas were mixed up and instead of South they announced North. Just like the mix up, it is not always the International Olympic Committee comes out and apologises. "We deeply apologise for the mistake that occurred when introducing the Korean team during the opening ceremony broadcast,” the IOC posted on X in Korean.