On the final day of the Paris Olympics, a man was arrested for climbing the Eiffel Tower, just hours before the closing ceremony. The incident occurred at around 14:45 local time (13:45 BST), when the man was seen scaling the iconic structure above the Olympic rings that had been displayed throughout the summer games.
Paris police quickly intervened, detaining the climber and escorting him away with his hands cuffed behind his back. The man’s identity and motivation for the climb remain unclear, and authorities have yet to disclose further details regarding his nationality or intentions.
Social media footage captured the shirtless man as he ascended the tower, as well as his subsequent arrest, where he was overheard commenting on the warm weather. The Associated Press reported that the area around the Eiffel Tower was evacuated during the incident, though these reports have not been independently verified by the BBC.
The Eiffel Tower, which played a prominent role in the Olympics’ opening ceremony, was not expected to feature in the closing events later that day.
