Paris Olympics: Man arrested after planning to attack football matches during the Games

French security authorities prevented a plan to attack football matches during the Paris Olympics. Credit: AP

French security authorities have prevented a plan to attack football events during the Paris Olympics, the country's interior minister said.

An 18-year-old man from Chechnya, a republic of Russia, was arrested on May 22 on suspicion of being behind a plan to attack football events due to be held in Saint-Etienne, southwest of Lyon, Gerald Darmanin said in a statement.

The man was preparing an attack targeting the Geoffroy-Guichard stadium, according to initial investigations.

The planned attack was to target spectators and police forces, and the suspect wanted to attack the Olympic events “to die and become a martyr", the statement said.

France is on its highest security alert ahead of the Paris Olympics, which are expected to draw millions of visitors when they begin in eight weeks' time.

French security authorities have prevented a plan to attack football events during the Paris Olympics, the country's interior minister said. Credit: AP

Football matches will take place in cities across France before the final in Paris’ Stade de France.

Mr Darmanin did not cite a specific security threat against the football event, but has said there are multiple potential threats, including those from Islamic extremist groups, violent environmental activists, far-right groups and cyberattacks from Russia or other adversaries.

The Paris Olympics organising committee said it was made aware of the arrest and praised intelligence and security services.

‘’Security is the highest priority of Paris 2024. We are working daily in close coordination with the Interior Ministry and all stakeholders — and will continue to be fully mobilised,'' it said in a statement.

Security concerns are notably high for the exceptional opening ceremony, which brings more than 100 world leaders to the French capital.

It involves boats carrying athletes along the Seine River on a six-kilometre (3.7-mile) open-air parade and huge crowds watching from the embankments.

In April, French President Emmanuel Macron said the July 26 opening ceremony could be moved instead to the country’s national stadium if the security threat is deemed too high.

Organisers had originally planned to host as many as 600,000 people, most watching free of charge from riverbanks.

But security and logistical concerns have led the government to progressively scale back its ambitions. Earlier this year, the overall number of spectators was reduced to around 300,000.

The French government also decided that tourists won’t be given free access to watch the opening ceremony because of security concerns. Free access will be invitation-only instead.

Extra security is also on hand for the Olympic torch relay, which passed on Friday through the monastery outcropping of Mont-Saint-Michel, which sees thousands of tourists daily.

The Paris Olympics will run from July 26 to August 11.

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