Who is the glittering “Golden Voyager” that will take center stage at the closing ceremony of the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris?
After the athletes from all participating countries entered the arena, a person dressed in gold descended from the sky into the Stade de France and opened the artistic part of the ceremony.
The Golden Voyager was greeted by the same mysterious hooded figure who carried the torch at the opening ceremony, as well as the silver hooded figure riding a silver horse along the Seine.
Similar to the mysterious characters that made their debut at the opening ceremony, people have been curious about the identity of the masked performer. Although it hasn’t been revealed, here’s what we know about the character.
A Golden Voyager lands in a deserted and mysterious world waiting to be explored. 👀#Paris2024 #ClosingCeremony pic.twitter.com/Gr6Z4u7iyb
— The Olympic Games (@Olympics) 11 August 2024
The figure was inspired by a series of references from France’s historical heritage, starting with the Ghost of the Bastille, according to its creators. It also refers to “The Spirit of Liberty”, also called Génie de la Bastille, a gilded bronze statue cast by Auguste Dumont in 1836. This allegorical statue represents Liberty and towers over the July Column, located in the center of the Place de la Bastille in Paris.
It was meant to be reminiscent of creatures from science fiction and video games.
Another inspiration, according to the artistic directors, was the Voyager Golden Record, launched into space on the Voyager spacecraft in 1977, which inspired both the title of the ceremony and the name of the character. This golden record, which serves as a time capsule in interstellar space and contains greetings from human civilization, was made in France.
The ceremony’s “Golden Voyager” was surrounded by a horde of dancers who also descended from the ceiling. Together they dug up five large rings representing the five continents involved.
The dancers raised the rings above themselves and formed the Olympic rings in the sky.
