Why Édith Piaf’s plaintive song was the perfect fit for Céline Dion at Paris Games

The melody for the first live performance since 2020 by the singer, who has suffered with ill-health, was suitably tragic

It was a very public triumph, both for Paris and for Celine Dion. It received plaudits around the world as one of the highlights of the opening ceremony of the Olympics. Yet the soundtrack was a tragic one.

The Canadian diva had chosen to celebrate the great French chansonnier Edith Piaf in a live, high-stakes comeback performance delivered from the iron shoulders of the Eiffel Tower amid showers of rain and fireworks.