Snoop Dogg has carried the Olympic torch through Paris ahead of the opening ceremony this evening – as viewers joked that it resembled a giant cannabis joint.
The rapper – famous the world over for his love of marijuana – is in Paris as a special correspondent for US TV network NBC and carried the Olympic flame on a short run around the Stade de France this morning.
For Paris 2024, Olympic organisers turned to French designer Mathieu Lehanneur, who said he drew inspiration from the themes of ‘equality, water and peacefulness’ in creating the curved steel beacon, which has ripples on its lower half.
But viewers watching Snoop – real name Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr – immediately thought of something else associated with the rapper as it burned at one end: a rippling cannabis joint.
It prompted a tidal wave of memes on social media as pranksters manipulated images to swap the torch for an oversized spliff, while a cartoonist even sketched Snoop taking a draw from the torch.
Snoop Dogg has carried the Olympic torch in Paris ahead of the opening ceremony on Friday evening
But the torch’s unique appearance has led to comparisons to a cannabis joint on social media – and an outpouring of memes
Some social media users swapped the torch for an oversized spliff – while one cartoonist sketched Snoop carrying the torch ‘hands free’, smoking it like a joint
Social media was united in comparing the torch to a cannabis joint
The 2024 Paris Games officially launch on Friday evening, with over 10,000 athletes set to gather on boats on the River Seine for the opening ceremony.
Last month, he ran a 34.44 in the 200m against American athletes Ato Boldon and Wallace Spearmon
Snoop Dogg was one of many stars carrying the torch, with French actress Laetitia Casta and French rapper MC Solaar carrying the torch as well.
The 52-year-old, dressed in all while, was all smiles as he carried the flame through the city with anticipation building ahead of the launch.
The Dogg Father has been throwing himself into his unlikely side gig as a sporting commentator, which began during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics as he took on work for American TV network Peacock.
Last month, he ran a 34.44 in the 200m against American athletes Ato Boldon and Wallace Spearmon during the US Olympic Team Trials in Eugene, Oregon.
‘34.44 for a 52-year-old? Ain’t bad,’ he said after posing with his time.
Snoop Dogg – known for songs like The Next Episode, with its ‘smoke weed every day’ lyric – detailed his love of the Games in a December statement to the network.
‘I grew up watching the Olympics and am thrilled to see the incredible athletes bring their A-game to Paris,’ he said prior to the carry. ‘It’s a celebration of skill, dedication, and the pursuit of greatness.’
The performer hails from the Los Angeles area, where the 2028 Olympics will be held.
He showed his support for Team USA last month when he attended the track and field trials.
The rapper even got to run on the track in Eugene, Oregon and met with Sha’Carri Richardson before she sealed Olympic qualification.
During the parade, meanwhile, there will be over 3,000 performers in the ceremony with the delegations and passengers on the boasts.
The pre-ceremony press conference was cancelled due to directors being pulled away for last-minute preparations, with concern rife over the volume of rain in the city.
The parade will finish in front of the Trocadero where the remaining performances and elements of the Olympic protocol will take place.
Although the floating parade was originally planned as a people’s party along the banks, the French police have intervened and for security reasons most spectators will be assigned to an area or allocated seats in fenced-off areas for the ceremony.
Snoop Dogg has embraced his unlikely role as a sports commentator for the Olympics – and even joined US athletes to run track last month
The rapper, who will be part of NBC’s coverage of the Games, was all smiles as he walked with the torch in hand
Behind the scenes, officials have been scrambling to finish last-minute preparations for show
‘I grew up watching the Olympics and am thrilled to see the incredible athletes bring their A-game to Paris,’ Snoop Dogg said prior to the carry
Each country will debut their athletes with one of their most prolific names holding their national or regional flags at the beginning of the ceremony.
Greece traditionally debut first as a nod to where the Olympics first originated, with the host country being last to feature.
The Olympic anthem will then ring out after the head of state of the host country announces the commencement of the Games.
The iconic Olympic flame will then be brought forward for the lighting of the main torch which is the culmination of the opening ceremony as well as the release of doves, symbolising peace amongst all countries.
More rain is scheduled for later on today in Paris, but organisers will hope that it holds off until after the ceremony has concluded.
Fears are, meanwhile, mounting that Moscow may be behind a ‘massive arson attack’ which has brought chaos to France’s rail network after an alleged Russian spy was arrested earlier this week.
Kirill Gryaznov, 40, was arrested on Wednesday and charged with working ‘with a foreign power to try and incite hostilities in France’ after being identified as working for the FSB, Vladimir Putin’s domestic intelligence agency.
Gryaznov – who denies any wrongdoing – is said to have boasted about turning the start of the Paris Olympics into ‘an opening ceremony like no other’.
Fears are mounting that Moscow may be behind a ‘massive arson attack’ which has brought chaos to France’s rail network
Last night, with just hours to go before the procession on the River Seine, fires were started at key installations, bringing trains to a halt and affecting around 800,000 passengers.
The Eurostar is advising passengers not to travel today after its rail services between London and Paris were disrupted by the acts of vandalism, the
has reported, with several trains cancelled and others diverted.
An airport located at the Swiss-French border has also been evacuated and closed due to a bomb alert, the French police said.
