Paris Olympic organisers slammed as farcical scenes outside rugby sevens event reopens Rugby World Cup wound
Rugby sevens at the Stade de France during the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The rugby sevens event at the Paris Olympics did not get off to a positive start as lengthy queues prevented supporters from getting into the stadium on time.
A record crowd of 69,000 – the biggest attendance for a single day in sevens – packed into the Stade de France, but a number of fans missed out on some of the action.
According to those at the stadium, who called the situation “pathetic”, the gates opened at 3 pm, just 30 minutes before the first match between Australia and Samoa.
L’Equipe journalist Thomas Perotto stated that fans were supposed to be allowed to enter at 1:30 pm, but that the gates did not open until around an hour-and-a-half later.
‘Long live the Olympics’
The Telegraph quoted one supporter as saying: “The mess to get into the Stade de France, a queue you can’t even see the end of. We will never see the first match. What a shame this organization is. Long live the Olympics.”
A Paris 2024 spokesperson responded to the chaos by saying: “All spectators were able to enter the stadium before the start of today’s 3.30 pm Rugby Sevens session at the Stade de France.
“A certain level of queuing is to be expected when a venue is at full capacity, as was the case today.”
World Rugby apologise for ‘absolutely horrendous’ scenes before England win
Rugby was not the only event affected with lengthy queues outside the Spain v Uzbekistan football match at the Parc des Princes.
The spokesperson added: “Paris 2024 is working with all the venue stakeholders to continually improve access conditions for future sessions, while also taking account of security requirements. The experience of spectators attending Games venues is at the top of Paris 2024’s priorities.
“Paris 2024 advises spectators travelling to the competition venues to consult the Ile-de-France Mobilités application to plan their journeys and the official Paris 2024 application for the latest information on their session.”
World Cup scenes
Those issues come just under a year after there were problems ahead of England’s clash with Argentina at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, which was hosted in France.
Fans missed the start of the encounter at the Stade Velodrome due to a lack of entry points and turnstiles, as well as insufficient staffing levels and extensive security checks.
Fortunately, there were no incidents during the match on September 9 in Marseille but, according to supporters who were there, it was “potentially dangerous.”
World Rugby issued a statement following the game which read: “Fans are the heartbeat of the tournament, and we would like to apologise to fans impacted by yesterday’s access challenges.
“We are working hard to enhance the experience for all visiting Marseille for Rugby World Cup 2023.”
There were no further issues during the tournament but that game, as well as Wednesday’s events, continued a theme for France when it comes to hosting big sporting events.
It started with the 2022 UEFA Champions League final in Paris, which saw chaotic scenes outside the Stade de France before Real Madrid’s game with Liverpool.