BTN News: In Lille, France, a beautiful old hotel has become the temporary home for Team USA’s basketball players. The city is excited for the Paris 2024 Olympics, and people are wondering if the hotel has bought extra-large beds for the tall players like Joel Embiid, who is 2.13 meters tall and weighs 127 kilos. It’s hard to imagine such a big player moving around in a small, old building with sloped roofs.
On Monday morning at 10:00 AM local time (08:00 GMT), a lot of security was in place. There were about 30 officers, both French police and private security, and they had closed off a street to keep the players safe. About 100 fans were waiting outside with their phones ready to take pictures. They only had a few seconds to see the NBA stars walk from the hotel to the bus.
Lille: The Hotspot of Olympic Basketball
Lille has become a very exciting place with many basketball fans coming from all over the world. They want to see the first games of the Olympic basketball tournaments. The city is full of life, and fans might even meet famous players like Dwyane Wade. Wade, who played for the Miami Heat, shared on social media that he went to a Kentucky Fried Chicken as soon as he arrived. He is now working as a TV commentator and watched the USA win against Serbia (110-84) on Sunday.
In the crowd, you might also see Spike Lee, a well-known film director and big fan of the New York Knicks. He is famous at Madison Square Garden, and here in Lille, fans are asking him for photos while he enjoys the game.
The Pierre Mauroy Stadium, where the Lille football team usually plays, has been turned into a place for basketball. This stadium is smartly designed to be used for different events. It even hosted the EuroBasket 2015, which Spain won. Now, it can hold 28,000 people for basketball games. The atmosphere is very lively, even more so than in NBA games.
High-Voltage Atmosphere
LeBron James, known as ‘The King,’ loved the energetic crowd. He said, “It was amazing, I was really excited. I’ve played in front of many people, but this was really special.” Kevin Durant felt the same way. He loved seeing different NBA jerseys in the crowd and said it was great to see so many basketball fans from around the world. Durant scored 23 points in the first game and said he loves how basketball brings people together.
Anthony Edwards, a new star player, also enjoyed the lively atmosphere. He said it felt like a football match and hoped all the games would be like this.
Managing the Crowd
Each day, the basketball games are split into three sessions: morning (two games), afternoon, and evening (one game each). This means the stadium fills up and empties three times a day. So, up to 84,000 people could attend each day. So far, the stadium has been almost full, except for the Serbia-Puerto Rico women’s game (58-55) on Sunday.
The rest of the basketball games will move to Paris-Bercy, which can hold 15,000 people. This smaller venue will still have a great atmosphere.
Lille’s Vibrant Scene
Having the first part of the basketball tournaments in Lille, before moving to handball, is a good idea for the organizers. It also makes the metro very busy. The yellow metro line is always full of fans in colorful shirts, and the lines to get on the metro go on past midnight.
For fans staying in the city center, the Grand Place has turned into an outdoor basketball court. At night, the Lille Opera House shows light and sound shows with Olympic themes, including a basketball version of ‘Romeo and Juliet.’
Lille has made the Olympic basketball events very exciting. The city’s warm welcome to Team USA and basketball fans from around the world is a big highlight of the Paris 2024 Olympics. Whether or not the hotel got extra-large beds, the experience in Lille is unforgettable.
