Touring the historic Paris Catacombs ahead of the Olympics
The Catacombs of Paris hold millions of skeletons that are hidden 65 feet underground. NBC News’ Keir Simmons visits the Catacombs and talks to a historian about their history and significance.
French sprinter barred from opening ceremony over hijab ban
French sprinter Sounkamba Sylla has been banned from the opening ceremony this Friday because of a French secularism law that prohibits public sector workers from wearing a hijab.
“You are selected for the Olympics, organized in your country, but you can’t participate in the opening ceremony because you wear a headscarf,” the 26-year-old member of the French 400-meter women’s and mixed relay teams wrote on Instagram.
During the European Championships earlier this year, Sylla wore a blue cap that was incorporated into the team’s kit. For the Paris Games, officials are trying to come up with a similar solution with the LVMH group, whose luxury brand Berluti is designing the uniform for the French delegation.
“We want to follow the same logic. That’s why we’re progressing in discussions with LVMH and Berluti.”French Minister of Sports Amélie Oudéa-Castéra said. “I am confident.”
Andy Murray withdraws from Olympic tennis singles
British tennis legend Andy Murray has withdrawn from the men’s Olympic singles, he said in a statement. The double Olympic gold medalist said that that he will still take part in the Olympic men’s doubles with fellow Team GB member Dan Evans.
“I’ve take the decision to withdraw from the singles to concentrate on the doubles with Dan. Our practice has been great and we’re playing well together,” Murray said in a statement Thursday. “Really looking forward to getting started and representing GB one more time.”
The 37-year-old confirmed earlier this week that he will retire from professional tennis after the Paris Games, following years of injury problems. The tennis player has particularly struggled for fitness in recent weeks in the wake of surgery to remove a spinal cyst.
Murray pulled out of the men’s singles tournament at Wimbledon earlier this month, but still played doubles alongside his brother Jamie.
Moon aligns perfectly with Olympic rings on the Eiffel Tower
Eagle-eyed photographers in Paris caught the moon rising perfectly in alignment with the glowing Olympic rings on the Eiffel Tower last night.
What happens inside Olympic Villages? These athletes gave us a tour
Domenick Fini / NBC News
The Olympic Games are beamed to billions of people around the world, giving viewers a real-time, close-up look at every pole vault, layup, breaststroke and backflip.
But there is a crucial part of the Olympics experience that remains largely unknown to spectators, sealed off from the camera crews and off-limits to cheering fans — the Olympic Village.
In recent weeks, NBC News spoke with decorated Olympians about life inside the sprawling residential complexes where thousands of athletes sleep, eat, train and socialize. They likened the villages to summer camps, college dorms, crowded hotels and — in the words of gold medalist swimmer Mark Spitz — a “gigantic cruise ship.”
‘I’ll be ready’: U.S. gymnastics alternates prepare to step in during Olympics
Hope for the best, prepare for the worst. That’s the slogan that drives Team USA’s Olympic alternates.
A slew of season-ending injuries rocked the nation’s best gymnasts at the U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials, highlighting the importance of understudies on the sport’s biggest stage.
“If anything happens, I’ll be ready,” said Olympic alternate Joscelyn Roberson.
The Texarkana-native and training mate of Simone Biles was just one spot away from making the five-person U.S. women’s gymnastics team, but she can still call herself an Olympian.