Salma Hayek carries Flame at Palais de Versailles
by Philip Barker at Palais de Congres, Porte Maillot, Paris
Actress Salma Hayek has carried the Olympic Flame through the hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles on what proved a spectacular day in the Relay.
“It’s an unforgettable, unexpected and magical moment,” Hayek told Le Parisien.
“This flame represents light, hope, peace. I was very surprised when I was asked to do so.”
Hayek has been a long-time supporter of the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and an advocate of gender equality through the CHIME for Change campaign.
Versailles is to host the equestrian events at Paris 2024; the Flame was carried on horseback in a spectacular journey through the grounds of the Château.
Earlier in the day it had visited the French Football Federation complex at Clairefontaine where a “collectif” run began in front of a giant replica of the FIFA World Cup, complete with two stars representing the 1998 and 2018 victories.
Didier Deschamps was a key Torchbearer at the centre, captained the team in 1998 and also won the World Cup as a coach in 2018 taking his place in a list which includes the late Mario Zagalo and Franz Beckenbauer.
“It’s a moment of happiness and pride, especially since it’s in Clairefontaine where I spent a lot of time,” Deschamps told France TV.
Amongst those to carry the Flame was Jean-Claude Lemoult, a member of the side which won the Olympic gold medal 40 years ago in Los Angeles.
The Flame was carried down the fairways at the Olympic golf venue in Guyancourt.
Golfers participating included Patricia Meunier-Lebouc who won the LPGA Chevron Championship in 2003, Thomas Levet, a member of the European Ryder Cup team in 2004 and 1999 team member Jean Van der Velde, runner up in the 1999 Open Championship at Carnoustie after a personal nightmare at the Barry Burn when leading the tournament.
The men’s golf competition is set to begin on August 1st.
The Flame also passed through St Remy Le Chevreuse and the Fondation Coubertin which will be familiar to ISOH members as the venue for the 2021 General Assembly.
Others amongst 175 Torchbearers on the day included double Olympic judo gold medallist Shohei Ono; former Brazilian soccer player Rai, a FIFA World Cup winner with Brazil in 1994 who spent five years with Paris St Germain; and Bruno Marie-Rose who won 4x100m relay bronze at the 1988 Seoul Olympics and is now Paris 2024’s head of technology.
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