Olympics-Security to be boosted following pitch invasion

Paris 2024 Olympics - Football - Men's Group B - Argentina vs Morocco - Geoffroy-Guichard Stadium, Saint-Etienne, France - July 24, 2024. Achraf Hakimi of Morocco reacts as pitch invaders run to the pitch after the match. /Thaier Al-Sudani/File Photo

PARIS - Paris Olympics organisers said they would boost security at the Games and ensure security staff are available and well trained after a pitch invasion at a soccer match between Argentina and Morocco on Wednesday.

Organisers said the incident during the opening match of the soccer tournament - in which security staff chased fans around the pitch at Saint-Etienne Stadium - had not posed a major security risk and that lessons would be learned.

"We do not minimise the events of yesterday," Olympics security director Bruno Le Ray told reporters, adding that additional staff and crowd barriers would be brought in for upcoming matches at Saint-Etienne, where access to the pitch is easier than at other stadiums.

Le Ray said that on average 17,000 agents would secure some 40 competition sites and some 100 non-competitive sites such as the Olympic Village, training facilities and hotels.

On the busiest days, this would increase to 22,000 staff. Staffing levels depend on the sports, with more than 1,000 agents deployed for major team sports events, but a fraction of that for individual sports like athletics.

Le Ray said that while police will take care of security outside the Olympic venues, security inside will be handled by organisers, who have contracts with over 110 security firms.

He said contracting sufficient security staff had been a challenge at recent Olympic Games, especially since the COVID pandemic, when many security agents looked for jobs elsewhere.

In order to mitigate the no-show risk - sometimes 10 to 30% of staff do not show up for work - organisers have asked companies to identify up to 15% more agents.

He acknowledged organisers had struggled to find sufficient female staff to screen female spectators, but said that technology would help.

"Using metal detectors, male security staff can control female spectators without the need for touch," he said.

Equipment such as barriers, cameras and detectors account for just under half of the Paris Olympics' 320 million euro ($347 million) security budget, with the rest mainly for staff.

($1 = 0.9210 euros)

-(Reuters)