Olympics 2024 live: Opening ceremony set to go ahead after ‘sabotage’ arson attack causes travel chaos

Organisers of the Olympics Games are pushing ahead with the opening ceremony later, despite thousands of visitors being delayed by arson attacks on the key rail lines into Paris .

The country’s rail operator said the French were under attack after the network was “sabotaged” hours before the start of the games.

Jean-Pierre Farandou, chief executive of SNCF , said the plans of thousands who had hoped to go to Paris for the games had been ruined.

“We are absolutely sorry that we are not able to run the trains expected by the French people. Today, it is the big departures that are being attacked, it is the French that are being attacked,” Mr Farandou told BFMTV.

The “coordinated” disruption is likely to cause delays over the weekend for 800,000 passengers, with up to 250,000 affected just before the Olympics opening ceremony is due to take place on the River Seine later.

One in four Eurostar trains will be cancelled today and over the weekend due to the arson attack damage, the company said.

Five incidents of damage or attempted damage to the SNCF network took place between 1am and 5.30am, targeting electrical or signalling boxes, according to France Info, citing sources “close to the matter”.

Follow the live blog below for the latest updates and news ahead of Paris 2024