As France prepares to welcome global sports lovers for this summer's Olympics, top athletes are warning of the stakes in elections that could hand unprecedented power to the far right, on the eve of the Games' opening ceremony.
The loudest of those came Sunday from soccer star Kylian Mbappé, ahead of his country's opening game in the European Football Championships, who noted "the extremes are on the cusp of taking power in France and called on young voters especially "to go and vote and really consider the importance of the situation."
Mbappé, 25, was referring to the commanding lead given in opinion polls to the National Rally, a party that promises to expel migrants and foreign-born criminals, champion traditional French identity and culture and limit the reach and influence of the 27-member European Union.
The National Rally, and its 28year-old president, Jordan Bardella, was the big winner in European parliamentary elections earlier this month.
The result prompted French President Emmanuel Macron to call a snap election for France's 577-seat legislature.
Polls show the National Rally in the lead with more than 30 per cent support. The Popular Front, a coalition of left-wing parties, has about 25 per cent support, while Macron's party, Renaissance, trails with about 20 per cent support.
The first round of voting will take place June 30. A second-round runoff vote will occur July 7, less than three weeks before the world arrives in Paris for the Olympic Games.
It's a scary thought for some.
Mbappé said he was hopeful voters would "make the right choice."
"I hope that we'll still be proud to wear our team colours on July 7."
Cécilia Berder, a two-time Olympian fencer who won silver in 2021, said she was preoccupied by politics at a time when all her focus should be on training for the Paris Games.
Bu hikaye Toronto Star dergisinin June 18, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
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Bu hikaye Toronto Star dergisinin June 18, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
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