Parisians won’t be saying “adieu” to the Olympic Games as early as they expected after the city’s mayor announced plans to leave the Olympic rings as a permanent fixture on the Eiffel Tower.
“I want the spirit of celebration to remain,” Mayor Anne Hidalgo told the Ouest-France regional newspaper, saying she did not want the Games to be “a side note” in Parisian history but rather a symbol of “the transformation in the city.”
“As mayor of Paris, the decision is mine,” she said.
But the plans have irked the descendants of Gustave Eiffel, the engineer who designed the famous tower, who say it was “not intended as an advertising platform.”
“We do not think it appropriate that the Eiffel Tower… should be permanently associated with an external organization, whatever its prestige,” the Eiffel family said in a statement.
The five rings – 95 feet (29 meters) wide and 43 feet (13 meters) high – were installed on the tower before the Olympics opened in July and were expected to be taken down after the Paralympics Closing Ceremony in September, before Hidalgo’s intervention.
Because the rings, which weigh 30 tons, are too heavy to remain on the tower permanently, they will be replaced with lighter versions, Paris’ deputy mayor, Pierre Rabadan, told CNN.
“We have so many questions not resolved yet because the original rings were heavy and built for temporary times, so we’ll bring them down and create new ones to keep them for a long time,” he said.
“We are not changing the Eiffel Tower, we are just adding something for some time,” he said, adding that Hidalgo would “say more about it” next week.
Parisians and tourists near the tower on Wednesday were divided on the issue, with some wanting to preserve the memories of the Games and others happy to see the back of them.
Residents of the city set up a petition demanding that the rings be removed from the tower after the Games. More than 36,000 people had signed by Wednesday afternoon.
“I think it’s an eyesore,” one said, adding that although the rings bring “something different,” the Eiffel Tower is not a landmark that “needs to change.”
Another resident said the rings would be a “nice addition” and preserve the “memorable” moments of the Olympics. “I think that impression should remain here in Paris,” he said.
The move has drawn criticism from the country’s culture minister, Rachida Dati, who said that although the rings are a symbol of unity, the “protection of shared heritage” is equally important.
Highlighting the tower’s status as a “protected monument,” Dati said any “substantial modification” would need “authorisation.”
