Prabowo Witnesses Indonesian Contingent’s Parade at the Opening of the 2024 Paris Olympics

Paris, Beritasatu.com – Minister of Defense (Menhan) and President-elect Prabowo Subianto witnessed the Indonesian contingent’s parade in the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics along the Seine River, Paris, Friday (26/7/2024) evening local time.

Head of Public Relations Bureau of the Secretariat General of the Indonesian Ministry of Defense, Brigadier General Edwin Adrian Sumantha, explained that Defense Minister Prabowo witnessed the parade together with Minister of State-Owned Enterprises Erick Thohir, who also serves as a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Chairman of the Indonesian Olympic Committee (NOC Indonesia) Raja Sapta Oktohari, and a number of officials who accompanied Prabowo during his visit to Paris this week.

“Before the opening ceremony began, French President Emmanuel Macron welcomed and hosted world leaders at the Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris, France. On that occasion, Defense Minister Prabowo was also present,” said Edwin.

Prabowo, wearing a grey suit and black cap, was greeted by President Macron and French First Lady Brigitte Macron upon his arrival at the Elysee Palace.

After attending a banquet at the Elysee Palace, Defense Minister Prabowo, together with his entourage of state leaders and invited guests, moved to the banks of the Seine River to watch the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics, which for the first time was held outside the stadium.

A total of 85 boats were used by the organizers to transport athletes from more than 200 countries during the Paris Olympic parade on the Seine River.

On board the ship, 14 representatives of the Red and White Contingent at the Paris Olympics, including Chef de Mission (CdM) Anindya Bakrie, judo athlete Maryam March Maharani, cyclist Bernard Benjamin van Aert, and two swimmers, Azzahra Permatahani and Joe Aditya, raised the red and white flag and waved their hands towards the spectator stands.

As the Indonesian Contingent passed by, Prabowo stood up and waved his hand at them. Defense Minister Prabowo also appeared to smile and applaud as he watched the Indonesian Contingent’s parade.

Even though Paris was being drenched in rain, Prabowo still chose to sit in the stands to watch the Indonesian contingent’s parade live.

At the Paris Olympics, there are a total of 29 Indonesian athletes who will compete in 12 sports, including swimming, cycling, athletics, judo, badminton, archery, artistic gymnastics, weightlifting, surfing, rowing, and rock climbing.