With less than one week to go until the Opening Ceremony of the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, the Olympic Torch has officially arrived at the French capital. This year’s Olympics is home to 10,000 torchbearers who have been tasked with carrying the Olympic Flame and the Paralympic Flame across France, with celebrations taking place across more than 400 towns and cities including its five overseas regions (French Guiana, French Polynesia, Reunion Island, Guadeloupe, and Martinique).
Spreading excitement and joy as the highly anticipated sports events edge closer, this year’s chosen torchbearers comprise remarkable personalities, signifying the union of sports, culture, and entertainment on the world’s most prestigious stage, including Hollywood legend Halle Berry and global pop sensation Jin from BTS. The two icons, along with the other torchbearers, will be visiting various historic sites across France until the Opening Ceremony. Here are several famous torchbearers you may recognise.
Snoop Dogg
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Famed American rapper and record producer Snoop Dogg is the latest celebrity unveiled to be carrying the Olympic torch through Paris just before the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games. The 52-year-old ‘Drop It Like It’s Hot’ singer teased on Instagram with a photo of him in Paris with the caption, “U ready? Paris 2024 Olympics ya digg”.
Charles Leclerc
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The 26-year-old Monégasque Formula One driver is currently racing for Scuderia Ferrari. In May, he won his first home race at the Monaco Grand Prix, becoming the first Monégasque driver to win the race in 93 years. He is the second F1 driver to become a torchbearer after Lewis Hamilton, who became the first at the London 2012 Olympic games.
Halle Berry
American Academy Award-winning actress Halle Berry was amongst the fortunate ones handpicked to be a torchbearer this year. The 57-year-old former beauty queen and fashion model carried the Olympic torch in front of the Palais des Festivals during the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2024 on June 18.
Jin from BTS
Fresh from his mandatory military service as the first BTS member to complete it, 31-year-old superstar Jin from global sensation BTS was the first torchbearer in the Louvre Museum section of the torch relay on July 14. This took place in conjunction with Bastille Day, the French national holiday celebrating the storming of the Bastille prison during the Revolution.
Tony Parker
Former San Antonio Spurs basketball player Tony Parker was amongst those participating in the torch relay taking place at the French port city of Marseille. The NBA Hall of Famer who is of French-American descent has four NBA titles and was the European champion in 2013. He recently retired his national team jersey.
Wang Yibo
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Chinese actor Wang Yibo, despite being tangled in several racial controversies, has been picked as a torchbearer for the last leg of the Olympic torch relay in the heart of Paris, representing China. The 26-year-old star is also a hip hop dancer and motorcycle racer, and in 2022, was also an ambassador for ice and snow sports at the Beijing Winter Olympics.
Arsène Wenger
Arsenal legend Arsène Wenger, who is one of the best football coaches to come from France, was a torchbearer in Strasbourg. The French former football manager and player left the Emirates and stepped away from management in 2018, and he currently serves as FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development.
Shaun White
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American former professional snowboarder and skateboarder Shaun White is a five-time Olympian and a three-time Olympic gold medalist in the half-pipe snowboarding event. He, who was given the honour to be a torchbearer at Cannes, retired from professional skateboarding in 2022 at the Winter Olympics in Beijing.
Didier Drogba
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The legendary Ivorian former professional football player for Marseille and former captain of the Ivory Coast was part of the torch relay in the port city and lit the Olympic cauldron. He was once named Chelsea’s greatest player ever and is the football club’s fourth highest goal scorer of all time.
Princess Charlene of Monaco
Before her marriage to Prince Albert II, Princess Charlene of Monaco was an Olympic swimmer representing South Africa. Princess Charlene, along with her husband Prince Albert II, were joined by their children Princess Gabriella and Prince Prince Jacques at the at the relay ceremony in Monaco.
Featured image: Joe Scarnici/Getty Images for USOPC