Portugal Colonial - LA Olympic chief hopes for French unity ahead of Paris Games

LA28 chairman Casey Wasserman said he hoped France would keep politics out of the Paris Olympics for the duration of the Games, which get under way on July 26.

France goes to the polls on June 30 and July 7 after President Emmanuel Macron's decision to call snap parliamentary elections, which are shaping as a showdown between political factions dominated by the far right and hard left.

The polls are widely seen as the most polarising elections held in France in decades with Macron warning this week that the respective platforms of the front-running parties could spark a "civil war."

"I understand the political situation in France, and politics all around the world is more probably complicated than it has ever been," Wasserman told AFP in an interview.

"But the truth is, the one thing the Olympics aspires to is to not be political.

"In our country, I like to say that we're about red, white and blue and not red and blue and not about left or right.

"It's not about the right-wing party or any other party. It's about the country coming together. And while politics may be in the background, certainly I hope for France and in the United States and Los Angeles that we can rise above politics and be really something that unites the country, irrespective of how people think about different issues."

Security sources in France have expressed concern that if the far-right wins a clear majority in the elections, any ensuing protests could divert resources from Olympic security.

- 'Embrace the opportunity' -

Wasserman said he hoped protests would not be held during the Olympics.

"I hope that doesn't happen," Wasserman said. "I hope whatever people think about politics, they realise the Olympics is really important for the country, and hope that they at least take that period of time to embrace the opportunity for France.

"I certainly hope the citizens of France, just as citizens of the United States, will realize these are special moments for the world to come together. And how should we let anybody take away from that?"

Wasserman also said he hoped the outcome of November's US presidential elections, which are also threatening to divide the nation, would have no impact on preparations for Los Angeles 2028.

"You can't predict the impact but our government engagement is not about who's president today," Wasserman said.

"It's about the organizations inside the federal government that we have to work for for the next four years. And that began several years ago and will continue all the way through."

Meanwhile Wasserman said dozens of Los Angeles 2028 Olympic staff will be on the ground in Paris hoping to gain insights into the intricacies of staging the most complex sporting event in the world.

LA28 will also have its own segment in the Olympic closing ceremony aimed at previewing the 2028 Games, with Hollywood late-night television producer Ben Winston overseeing the production.

"It's our chance to show people and give people a sense of what LA is going to be like and feel like," Wasserman said.

"The best I can say today is it's going to be authentically LA."

T.Vitorino--PC