Plenty of beauty but some sorry sights as well

Hence why so many events have taken place right in the heart of the city, from beach volleyball under the shadow of the Eiffel Tower, to archery at Les Invalides, triathlons in the Seine and skateboarding at the La Place de la Concorde.

Paris has no shortage of impressive indoor sporting venues either and events have been spread around, whether it be badminton at Porte de la Chapelle Arena, to the gymnastics and now basketball (Simone Biles making way for another global superstar in LeBron James) at Bercy.

Boxing, meanwhile, having started at the North Paris Arena, a venue BBC boxing pundit Steve Bunce complained was so far in the sticks the only place to eat was IKEA, has now switched across town to the far grander setting of Court Philippe-Chartier at Roland Garros. Tuesday night’s opening session looked spectacular.

By and large the transport network has held up and moving around the city is straightforward. It feels safe too, but then there are 50,000 police officers on the streets, so anyone thinking of causing trouble should naturally think twice.

You don’t have to look too hard though, to be reminded Paris is a city with the same social problems as most others, if not more so.

Reports before the Games claimed thousands of homeless people had been removed from the city as part of what campaigners sarcastically described as a “clean-up” operation.

But many still remain and if you venture from the central districts you can’t help but see them, some living in tents, others in vans, families sleeping on mattresses on hot nights next to the slip road of the Peripherique.

This is the image of Paris the city’s politicians, France’s politicians more to the point, would rather you didn’t see.

Whether they like it or not, this is reality, one which will still exist next week, next month and without serious attention for years after memories of sporting triumphs in the sunshine have long dissolved into haze.