PARIS — Jean-Marie Filopon rushed from the bus stop to his home before the Olympics opening ceremony began, pushing a trolley loaded with groceries, as a steady drizzle fell on the neighborhood of Franc-Moisin in Saint-Denis, just outside of Paris.
He was only trying to get out of the rain, not to take in the spectacle.
“I’m not sure it’s the most important thing for me,” Filopon said, shrugging off the significance of the opening ceremony happening six miles away on the Seine River.
The massive production with all the glitz and glamor of the opening ceremony ended late Friday night, but it was just another day in Saint Denis. Situated just a five-minute walk from the Stade de France, the venue for track and field and rugby sevens, this community feels the weight of being so close yet so far from the grand festivities that were unfolding nearby.
For 56-year-old Filopon, and many others in this neighborhood, the Olympics might as well be taking place on the other side of the world - not just a short distance from their homes.
Franc-Moisin is a stark contrast to the grandeur of the Louvre museum, the Eiffel Tower, or any other sites the parade of barges carrying Olympic delegations of athletes passed by in the center of Paris. Since its construction in 1974 on the grounds of a cleared slum, this low-income public housing complex has not been renovated, with plans to complete improvements by 2030.
A study by the Saint Denis city hall in 2017 found that the average annual living wage in Franc-Moisin was 9,500 euros ($10,319 at today’s rate), compared to the then national average of 22,000 euros.
Despite a newly constructed bridge connecting it to the Stade de France and the recently built Aquatic Center where the diving competitions will be held, residents feel cut off from the celebrations.
“You will see, there will be police officers blocking us from getting there anyway,” said Marie Léon, a 38-year-old mother of two, who has lived in the district for nine years. “From my window, I can listen to the roars and cheers of the Stade de France. That will be the only way I’ll be included in the Olympics.”
The sounds will be a distant echo of what’s happening just beyond the reach and view of Léon, of Haitian descent, who was walking her two children during the ceremony in the small park nestled between the four blocks of the public housing, or “cité” as the complexes are known in France.
Inside her two-bedroom apartment, Anouchka Iowata, was watching the start of the ceremony in hope of catching the performance of the French singer Aya Nakamura, who grew in another “cité” not far from where Iowata lives. When Nakamura finally appeared on the screen and performed fan-favorite “Djadja,” Iowata screamed, danced and filmed the entire performance on her phone.
“I only watched the show because of her, she killed it,” Iowata said, switching off the TV after seeing the Uzbekistan delegation pass near the Pont de l’Alma. With no interest in the rest of the ceremony, she was off to the gym.
However, there are some in the neighborhood who hope the Paris Games will have a lasting impact, creating jobs, new building construction and more activities for children during the summer holidays.
“I was here during the football World Cup in 1998, now I’m here for the Olympics,” said Monique Kousso, 51, “I’m feeling so lucky to have two major events right at my doorsteps. More people here should see the bright side of this.”
In an effort to include the residents of the Franc-Moisin, the City of Saint-Denis handed 10 invitations to the opening ceremony and 130 tickets to the Olympics and Paralympics Games. All were to be won during a raffle held in early July.
Behind the scaffolding that surrounds the neighborhood, a dozen youngsters continued to play soccer on the local playground, despite the pouring rain of this early evening. A small group gathered in a local kebab shop, one of the few stores in the area.
But they weren’t watching the Olympic festivities, they were engrossed in a replay of a Turkish league soccer match.
“I had no idea the opening ceremony was tonight,” one of the patrons admitted.
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