Thousands of Olympic competitors cruised down the River Seine in a spectacular opening ceremony for the Paris Games on Friday that celebrated French history and culture to the delight of a crowd undeterred by persistent rain.

The Olympic flame cruised into Paris on Friday on a diesel-belching tug, the torch held aloft by its white-clad bearer, having earlier been carried by US rapper Snoop Dogg, as it passed under the peripherique motorway.

Sabotage crippling France's high speed TGV rail network will have "no impact on the ceremony" opening the Paris Olympics on Friday evening, the city's Mayor Anne Hidalgo said.

In a historic first, the opening ceremony will be held outside the stadium, and the 2024 Olympics will be the first in history to feature an equal number of male and female athletes.

The state-owned railway operator said arsonists had targeted installations along the lines connecting Paris with the country's west, north and east.

France will deploy its largest post-war security operation for today’s opening ceremony.

The absence of Russia only bolsters America's team chances.

The opening ceremony is likely to define the mood for the rest of the July 26-August 11 Games.

Bangladesh archer Sagor Islam finished 45th out of 64 participants in the ranking round of the men’s individual event in the ongoing Paris Olympics 2024 after scoring 652 on Thursday.

Kevin Durant on Thursday brushed off suggestions from team-mate Joel Embiid that the advanced age of the USA's star-studded Olympic basketball squad could hinder their bid for a fifth consecutive gold medal in Paris.

The head of the Palestine Olympic Committee criticised "double standards" from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Thursday over its decision to allow Israel to compete at the Paris Games.

Novak Djokovic says he has "high expectations" as he chases an elusive Olympic gold medal, with his confidence unshaken despite a poor year by his stellar standards.

Nadal, a singles gold medallist at the 2008 Olympics, is playing in his final Games having also won doubles gold in Rio in 2016, while Djokovic was a bronze medallist in singles in 2008.

Paris Olympics organisers are looking into what led to a pitch invasion during the opening match of the Olympic soccer tournament between Argentina and Morocco, they said on Thursday.

Two-time Olympic gold medallist Andy Murray said he will not compete in the singles competition at the Paris Games and will prioritise the doubles event in the final tournament of his career before retirement.

The Hashimi siblings are the first cyclists - male or female - to represent Afghanistan at the Games.

The Italian said he was "sad and disappointed" to drop out, adding that he had started feeling unwell on Monday after a practice week in Monaco.

France deployed about 1,000 police officers backed by Israel's own internal security service, Shin Bet, to welcome thousands of supporters for the evening kick-off. They cordoned off the streets around the Parc des Princes in western Paris and set up a perimeter a few kilometres away from the stadium

"I can't explain what happened. We spent about an hour and a half in the dressing room where they never told us what was going to happen," Mascherano told reporters.

Former Olympian and current BKSP shooting coach Asif Hossain Khan admitted the harsh reality of Bangladesh’s chances in the Olympics, but he was hopeful that if these athletes can deliver their best individual performance in the meet, they can count their participation differently.