“Apparently she has arrived in Paris, it’s great!” shared Macron on French television. “I would be immensely happy if she could be at this opening ceremony, like all our compatriots.”
Amid rumours that Lady Gaga will be performing at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics on Friday, there has been mounting speculation over the possible participation of Céline Dion on the evening.
The celebrated Canadian singer has been spotted arriving in Paris and is said to be staying in the same hotel as Lady Gaga.
Dion and Gaga’s involvements have yet to be officially confirmed by the Olympics committee. Last month, Sports and Olympics Minister Amélie Oudéa told French broadcaster France 2 that Dion’s participation in the opening ceremony “is within the realm of possibility”.
Adding to the speculation were comments made by French President Emmanuel Macron.
“Apparently she has arrived in Paris, it’s great!” shared Macron on France 2. “I would be immensely happy if she could be at this opening ceremony, like all our compatriots.”
Macron did not confirm anything, however, adding: “I will not reveal anything, what [opening ceremony director] Thomas Jolly and all his teams have prepared. There is also a surprise.”
He concluded, with a smile: “I am not responsible for his schedule.”
Should the rumours be confirmed, it will mark Dion’s first performance in years. She has not performed on stage since her diagnosis of Stiff Person Syndrome in December 2022, which forced her to cancel several live shows.
The syndrome is a neurological condition that causes muscles to spasm. It primarily affects the brain and spinal cord and causes muscle stiffness, posture problems and sensory issues.
Earlier this year, Dion gave an update on her battle with the autoimmune condition that has put her career on hold. In a lengthy interview with Vogue France magazine, she described her relentless daily battle with SPS.
When asked whether she will return to the stage and tour again, the singer remained cautious: “I can’t answer that. Because for four years I’ve been saying to myself that I won’t go back, that I’m ready, that I’m not ready…”
She concluded: “Today, I can’t say to you: ‘Yes, in four months’ time. I just don’t know… My body will tell me.”
Should Dion perform on Friday, it would be the second time that she participates in an opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, after performing a rendition of ‘The Power of the Dream’ in Atlanta in 1996.
Prior to her sighting in Paris and the premiere of her documentary I Am: Celine Dion on June 25, Dion’s last public appearance was at the 2024 Grammys, where she presented the Album of the Year award to Taylor Swift.
Other rumoured performances during the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games on Friday include Lady Gaga – who sang Edith Piaf’s ‘La Vie En Rose’ in the 2018 film A Star Is Born – and French R&B singer Aya Nakamura, whose involvement caused a ludicrous stir in France, with far right National Rally leader Marine Le Pen stating that it amounts to “humiliating the French”.
Gaga’s participation seems to have been teased by the official Olympics account, which released a video of someone disguised in a black hood and chrome accessories with the Olympic flag draped around their shoulders – with the ominous tagline “You haven’t seen anything yet.”
For the first time in the history of the summer Olympic Games, the opening ceremony will not take place in a stadium. The ceremony will be held along the River Seine.
The show has been designed by theatre director Thomas Jolly, who stated in an interview with AP: “All I can tell you is that it will be very meaningful for the artists that will perform.”
