In high places, there is a subject that people dare not talk about, but which is on everyone’s mind: what if the whole thing ends in a gigantic fiasco?
The countdown is ticking down inexorably to the launch of the Olympic Games in Paris, but France’s capital city has never seemed in such a poor position to host this international event. Controversy after controversy is undermining Mayor Anne Hidalgo to the point where international tourists, athletes, and officials are worried about whether the city will even be able to provide the right conditions for the Games.
Since November, panic has begun to set in about the viability of holding the Olympic Games in Paris. Anne Hidalgo, who stubbornly wanted to host them—and has put all her energy into the project—is now herself casting doubt on the event. At an organisational meeting at the end of November, the mayor put on a grand theatrical performance to explain that the transport system would never be ready in time, taking everyone to task for her negative attitude.
