Saudi Leadership Congratulates Qatar on Asian Cup Win

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and the Crown Prince. SPA
The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and the Crown Prince. SPA
TT

Saudi Leadership Congratulates Qatar on Asian Cup Win

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and the Crown Prince. SPA
The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and the Crown Prince. SPA

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud has sent a cable of congratulations to Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on Qatar’s success of hosting the AFC Asian Cup and the Qatari national football team’s winning of the cup.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud sent a similar cable of congratulations to the Emir.

Qatar won the Asian Cup title after defeating Jordan 3-1 on Saturday.



‘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)
TT

‘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.