Snoop Dogg is set to bring extra swagger to the final leg of the Olympic torch journey in France, as the crip-walking rapper is scheduled to parade the flame through Paris ahead of the opening ceremony on Friday.
The mayor of Saint-Denis, Mathieu Hanotin, announced the news on X on Tuesday morning. In French, the mayor said Snoop Dogg will carry the flame through the streets of Saint-Denis before the start of the 33rd Games.
Saint-Denis, a northern suburb of Paris, is the final stop for the torch before it will be carried to the Eiffel Tower to light the Olympic cauldron.
Though Snoop Dogg (real name Calvin Broadus Jr.) is already well-known for lighting up, he celebrated the announcement on social media with news article screenshots publicizing his participation.
“U gots to do it!!” Snoop Dogg wrote in an emoji-filled Instagram caption. “Will u be watchin??”
On Monday, Snoop Dogg shared a photo of himself posed outside Paris’ city hall, the Hotel de Ville, alongside the caption, “U Ready? Paris 2024 Olympics ya digggg.”
French actress Laetitia Casta and French rapper MC Solaar will also carry the torch on Friday.
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Officials have yet to announce the name of the final torchbearer for the Paris Olympic Games. This person will have the honour of lighting the Olympic cauldron to begin the Games on the River Seine on Friday night.
As is tradition, the torch was first lit at the site of ancient Olympia in April. According to the International Olympic Committee, the flame is “a symbol of peace and friendship among nations since antiquity.”
The flame is always lit by the sun’s rays caught in the centre of a parabolic mirror to “ensure its purity.” Each runner who carries the flame, Snoop Dogg included, brings the symbolic message of peace with them along their journey.
With the world set to watch Snoop Dogg carry the torch on its 67th leg this week, hopefully this is one instance where the rapper won’t Drop It Like It’s Hot.
Snoop Dogg’s Olympic run doesn’t end after he hands off the torch. The rapper is already set to perform duties as a special NBC Olympics correspondent for the Games.
The 33rd Olympic Games will take place in Paris from July 26 to Aug. 11.
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