Paris sets an unbeatable scene for an event the magnitude of the Olympic Games. The picture-perfect backdrop is already there, and Paris 2024’s promotional videos include horses cantering past the fountains of an empty Versailles, breakdancing on the Place de la Concorde, which is uncharacteristically devoid of litter, and cyclists whizzing around the Arc de Triomphe, where cars usually sit in a fume-filled traffic jams. Behind this idyllic portrayal, however, problem after problem rears its ugly head.
