Paris – The Olympic flame will make the final leg of its long journey on Friday to the Paris Olympics opening ceremony on the Seine river in the heart of the City of Light. A star-studded cast of torch bearers has been drafted to usher the torch – including rapper Snoop Dogg.
The 52-year-old American pop culture icon will carry the Olympic flame through the suburb of Saint-Denis, north of Paris, which is home to the Stade de France Olympic stadium and the Olympic Village.
While he may be best known for his music, Snoop is no stranger to the world of sports. He founded the Snoop Youth Football League almost 20 years ago to help give inner city children an opportunity to play the game.
He will also be involved in Olympics coverage. NBC said in a statement in December that Snoop Dogg will provide “regular reports” during NBCUniversal’s coverage and give “his unique take on what’s happening in Paris.”
Snoop was born Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. in Los Angeles, the city that will host the next Summer Olympics in 2028.
This year’s torch relay started with a rap star, too. One of Marseille’s most famous sons, singer Jul, was chosen to light the Olympic cauldron on May 8, when the flame first arrived in France.
Since then, the torch relay has taken in nearly 500 cities and towns and several famous landmarks on its way to Paris for the July 26 opening ceremony.
Several French celebrities have also been tapped as torch-bearers for the final day, including rap star MC Solaar and actress Laetitia Casta.
Friday’s final stage of the torch relay begins in the streets of Saint-Denis. It will pass near the town’s basilica, where many of France’s kings are buried.
The flame will make a stop in the Olympic Village, for the athletes and staff to admire. It will be the only chance for some of the athletes to take part in the opening day festivities. Most of those taking part in actual sports events the next day have said they’ll spend Friday training or resting and then getting to bed early.
Some men’s soccer and rugby teams will already be in competition, as their games get underway before Friday’s official opening. The two sports start early because the number of nations involved means more rounds and, factoring required rest periods, they take longer to complete.
The torch relay will continue along the canal that links Saint-Denis with Paris. It will pass by the Stade de France and the new Olympic Aquatic Center in Saint-Denis – the only Olympic venue built from scratch for the Games. It will be used for diving, water polo and synchronized swimming events.
Architects Cécilia Gross and Laure Mériaud told CBS News they had to be inventive in designing the bottom of the pool and drawing the lanes, to accommodate the very different activities taking place there, while also making it look like an ordinary swimming pool from above.
Faithful to the Paris Games’ promise of sustainability, the aquatic center will be repurposed after the Olympics and used as a local pool in the disadvantaged suburb with a high youth population.
The flame will continue to central Paris and join a flotilla on the Seine for the opening ceremony on the river. Organizers have not yet revealed the name of the final torch-bearer, who will light the Olympic cauldron to signal the formal opening of the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad.
Superstar Céline Dion is expected to sing at the ceremony, along with Franco-Malian singer Aya Nakamura, whose name was reportedly put forward by President Emmanuel Macron. Social media was abuzz with rumors that Lady Gaga was spotted in Paris on Tuesday, leading to speculation that she might also be part of the opening night lineup.