French President Emmanuel Macron had hoped the Paris Olympics would cement his political legacy, but a failed bid for early legislative elections has paralyzed him politically and cast a shadow over any standing he has on the international stage.
As Macron prepares to welcome more than 100 heads of state and tens of thousands of spectators to the opening ceremony on Friday along the Seine River, he has become politically weak and an unpopular caretaker president, while his country hosts the world’s biggest sporting event amid heightened security concerns.
“Macron expected to welcome the Olympics like an emperor… but now he’s a lame duck,” said French historian Patrick Weil.
As he toured the Olympic village on Monday, Macron defended his decision to dissolve parliament and denied that the ensuing political instability would cast a shadow over the Games.
"I am the one who made the decision," he said, referring to his intention to call elections before the Games, adding: "There is no bitterness. On the contrary, we have done what we should have done before (the Olympics). Now we can focus fully on the Games."
In an attempt to keep the crisis under control for a few weeks, he appeared to suggest that he was unlikely to appoint a prime minister before the end of the Games, adding: "There is a kind of truce."
Macron called the legislative elections after his crushing defeat by the far-right National Rally party in last month's European Union elections, saying he wanted the vote to remove political uncertainty.
Instead, French voters have formed a swing parliament, with no bloc so far able to form a government, leaving Macron's previous government in a caretaker capacity.
"The Olympics are a great opportunity, an exceptional moment, a great showcase for our country... but the difficulties our citizens are facing continue despite the Olympics. This National Assembly is not currently in a position to deal with them," said far-right lawmaker Julien Odoul.
Macron aides, Olympics officials, lawmakers and public figures told Reuters that the show would go on without years of security and logistical planning being affected by politics. But some acknowledged that the Games would be overshadowed by the political crisis.
Socialist lawmaker Christine Peris-Beaune said the snap elections called by Macron had left many French people confused and angry. "We have never experienced such great uncertainty," she said.
It wasn't supposed to be this way. In his New Year's Eve address to the nation in December, Macron spoke with pride and optimism about the year ahead.
“It only happens once in a century, hosting the Olympics and Paralympics… 2024 will be a year of decision, of choices and of renewal,” he said.
But more than six months on, Macron’s hopes of renewing his mandate have evaporated, while the political crisis sparked by the snap election has also led to lower-than-expected tourist turnout for the Games.
Reuters reported earlier this month that flight and hotel bookings to Paris for the Olympics were lower than expected, with experts blaming rising travel and accommodation costs, security concerns and political turmoil.
The ongoing and evolving US election cycle — which has so far included an assassination attempt on Republican candidate Donald Trump and President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the race — has taken the spotlight off Macron’s big event.
For her part, French Sports Minister Amelie Oudea-Castera acknowledged that the past few weeks had been “politically difficult”.
But she rejected the idea that the political crisis had cast a shadow over the Games. France can breathe a sigh of relief that the far-right did not win enough seats to form a government, as some polls had predicted. Macron has ruled out resigning before his term ends, saying he will not appoint a new government before the end of the Olympics.