Current:Home > NewsCeline Dion makes musical comeback at Paris Olympics with Eiffel Tower serenade -Thrive Success Strategies
Celine Dion makes musical comeback at Paris Olympics with Eiffel Tower serenade
View
Date:2025-04-15 05:51:18
PARIS (AP) — Celine Dion made a triumphant return Friday with a very public performance: closing out the Paris Olympics’ opening ceremony from the Eiffel Tower.
Nearly two years after revealing her stiff person syndrome diagnosis, Dion belted Edith Piaf’s “Hymne à l’amour” (“Hymn to Love”) as the finale of the roughly four-hour spectacle. Her appearance had been teased for weeks, but organizers and Dion’s representatives had refused to confirm whether she was performing.
On a page dedicated to Dior’s contributions to the opening ceremony, the media guide referred to “a world star, for a purely grandiose, superbly scintillating finale.”
This photo released by the Olympic Broadcasting Services shows Canadian Singer Celine Dion performing at the Eiffel Tower during the opening ceremony for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France, Friday, July 26, 2024. (Olympic Broadcasting Services via AP)
Dion had been absent from the stage since 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic forced the postponement of her tour to 2022. That tour was eventually suspended in the wake of her diagnosis.
The rare neurological disorder causes rigid muscles and painful muscle spasms, which were affecting Dion’s ability to walk and sing. In June, at the premiere of the documentary “I Am: Celine Dion,” she told The Associated Press that returning required therapy, “physically, mentally, emotionally, vocally.”
“So that’s why it takes a while. But absolutely why we’re doing this because I’m already a little bit back,” she said then.
Even before the documentary’s release, Dion had taken steps toward a comeback. In February, she made another surprise appearance, at the Grammy Awards, where she presented the final award of the night to a standing ovation.
For Friday’s performance, Dion’s pearl outfit was indeed designed by Dior. Speaking on French television, the Paris organizing committee’s director of design and costume for ceremonies, Daphné Bürki, recalled Dion’s enthusiasm for the opportunity.
“When we called Celine Dion one year ago she said yes straight away,” Bürki said.
Dion is not actually French — the French Canadian is from Quebec — but she has a strong connection to the country and the Olympics. Dion’s first language is French, and she has dominated the charts in France and other French-speaking countries. (She also won the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest with a French-language song ... representing Switzerland.) And early in her English-language career — even before “My Heart Will Go On” from “Titanic” — she was tapped to perform “The Power of The Dream,” the theme song for the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
Dion’s song choice also evoked a sports connection: Piaf wrote it about her lover, boxer Marcel Cerdan. Cerdan died soon after she wrote the song, in a plane crash.
___
Associated Press reporters Sylvie Corbet, Jerome Pugmire and Samuel Petrequin contributed.
___
For more coverage of the Paris Olympics, visit https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games.
veryGood! (2)
Related
- Small twin
- Woman walking with male companion dies after being chased down by bear in Slovakia
- Emily Ratajkowski recycles engagement rings as 'divorce rings' in post-split 'evolution'
- Shhhh! If you win the Mega Millions jackpot, be quiet. Then, do this.
- Backstage at New York's Jingle Ball with Jimmy Fallon, 'Queer Eye' and Meghan Trainor
- Men's NCAA Tournament 2024: 10 bold predictions for March Madness
- Winner of $1.765 billion Powerball jackpot described as 65-year-old who 'adores his grandchildren'
- 2 Japanese men die in river near Washington state waterfall made popular on TikTok
- A South Texas lawmaker’s 15
- 'Lady Gaga Jazz & Piano' returning for 8 summer dates in Las Vegas
Ranking
- The Best Stocking Stuffers Under $25
- Founders of the internet reflect on their creation and why they have no regrets over creating the digital world
- The Viral COSRX Snail Mucin Essence is Cheaper Than it was on Black Friday; Get it Before it Sells Out
- Georgia lawmakers may be close to deal to limit rise in property tax bills
- Pressure on a veteran and senator shows what’s next for those who oppose Trump
- Maker of Jeep, Dodge and Ram vehicles to follow California’s strict vehicle emissions standards
- Alabama enacts new restrictions on absentee ballot requests
- Former NHL Player Konstantin Koltsov's Cause of Death Revealed
Recommendation
'No Good Deed': Who's the killer in the Netflix comedy? And will there be a Season 2?
Dairy Queen's free cone day is back: How to get free ice cream to kick off spring
Man dead, woman rescued after falling down 80-foot cliff in UTV at Kentucky adventure park
Sentencing continues for deputies who tortured 2 Black men in racist assault
What were Tom Selleck's juicy final 'Blue Bloods' words in Reagan family
Get 50% Off Kylie Cosmetics, 60% Off J.Crew Jeans, 35% Off Cocoon by Sealy Mattresses & More Daily Deals
New civil complaints filed against the Army amid doctor's sexual assault case
Spring brings puppy and kitten litters. So make sure to keep them away from toxic plants.