France, the host country of the 33rd Summer Olympic Games in 2024, is facing major challenges in ensuring the security of the Olympic Village due to the significant increase in theft incidents that have recently occurred.
A number of athletes have reported in recent days that they were robbed inside the Olympic Village, and the Japanese “Kyodo” Agency reported that a member of the national rugby sevens team lost his wedding ring, in addition to a necklace and a sum of money from his room, while the equipment of the Slovak cyclists was also stolen, according to the French magazine “Amaury Brillet”.
Despite the assurances of the spokeswoman for the Paris 2024 Olympics, Ms. Anne Decca, about the strict security measures in the Olympic Village, which includes more than 180 security cameras, these incidents have raised questions about the effectiveness of these measures.
Ms. Decca stressed the commitment of the organizers to providing a safe environment for the athletes, confirming that the village is a safe place in general.
The Olympic Village, which accommodates about 14,000 athletes on an area of 52 hectares, lacks a permanent presence of law enforcement officers, although there is a police station nearby, and the number of security personnel deployed at the site has not been disclosed, which increases future security challenges.
Several theft incidents occurred during the Paris 2024 Olympics that affected athletes and individuals, most notably theft of money and personal belongings from members of the Argentine Olympic football team from their residence in the Olympic Village. In another incident, a bag containing the city of Paris’s plans for the Olympics was stolen from a municipal employee who was carrying his laptop and USB sticks containing important data, although the municipality later confirmed that the stolen information did not include security plans.
The French judiciary summons Carla Bruni again in the “Libyan financing” case.