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France Coach Deschamps to Miss Euro 2024 Draw after Undergoing Surgery

France's head coach Didier Deschamps addresses the media during a press conference at the Agia Sophia Stadium in Athens on November 20, 2023, on the eve of the UEFA Euro 2024 group B qualifying match between Greece and France. (AFP)
France's head coach Didier Deschamps addresses the media during a press conference at the Agia Sophia Stadium in Athens on November 20, 2023, on the eve of the UEFA Euro 2024 group B qualifying match between Greece and France. (AFP)
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France Coach Deschamps to Miss Euro 2024 Draw after Undergoing Surgery

France's head coach Didier Deschamps addresses the media during a press conference at the Agia Sophia Stadium in Athens on November 20, 2023, on the eve of the UEFA Euro 2024 group B qualifying match between Greece and France. (AFP)
France's head coach Didier Deschamps addresses the media during a press conference at the Agia Sophia Stadium in Athens on November 20, 2023, on the eve of the UEFA Euro 2024 group B qualifying match between Greece and France. (AFP)

France coach Didier Deschamps won't attend Saturday’s draw for next year’s European Championship after undergoing surgery.

The French federation said in a statement on Friday that Deschamps was operated on earlier this week after suffering back pain for several weeks. France will instead be represented by assistant coach Guy Stephan.

“It was not a light-hearted decision that I decided not to go to the draw,” Deschamps was quoted as saying in the statement. "It’s always a pleasant moment, during which I really enjoy chatting with my counterparts. But wisdom dictated a few days’ rest."

Tournament host Germany and France, Portugal, Spain, Belgium and England are in Pot 1 for the 24-team draw in Hamburg.

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‘Flooding Rains’ Threaten to Dampen Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony

Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)
Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)
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‘Flooding Rains’ Threaten to Dampen Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony

Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)
Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)

The Paris Olympics look likely to get off to a soggy start.

Meteo-France, the French weather service, is predicting “flooding rains” Friday evening when the opening ceremony is set to unroll along the Seine River. But the show is set to go on as planned, starting at 1:30 p.m. EDT/7:30 p.m. CEST and should last more than three hours.

Already in the late afternoon, skies were gray with intermittent drizzle. There was a silver lining, though, with temperatures expected to stay relatively warm throughout the evening.

Instead of a traditional march into a stadium, about 6,800 athletes will parade on more than 90 boats on the Seine River for 6 kilometers (3.7 miles). Though 10,700 athletes are expected to compete at these Olympics, hundreds of soccer players are based outside Paris, surfers are in Tahiti and many have yet to arrive for their events in the second week, organizers said Thursday.

Hundreds of thousands of people, including 320,000 paying and invited ticket-holders, are expected to line the Seine’s banks as athletes are paraded along the river on boats.