Snoop Dogg is no stranger to lighting things up, but he’ll have a very important job making sure the Olympic flame doesn’t burn out this week.
The rapper has been confirmed to be an Olympic flame torchbearer ahead of the opening ceremony in Paris this Friday. Snoop isn’t merely carrying the torch through the idyllic French countryside, either — he’s scheduled to carry the torch on the penultimate leg through the Parisian suburb of Saint-Denis, past the Stade de France, the new Olympic Aquatics Center, and part of the Olympic Village.
The final torchbearer has yet to be confirmed, but several French celebrities are tasked with carrying the flame before Snoop, including rapper MC Solaar, actress Laeticia Casta, film director Alice Diop, Paralympian Charles-Antoine Kouakou, and rugby player Abdelatif Benazzi. The torch will be placed in Paris’ Tuileries Gardens, where it will remain for the duration of the tournament.
Snoop Dogg isn’t just participating in the torchbearing part of the Olympics — he’ll be both in-studio and on the ground as a part of NBC’s Paris Olympics coverage alongside host Mike Tirico. According to an NBC press release, Snoop Dogg will be visiting multiple Olympic events around the city, interviewing athletes and coaches, and “exploring the unique sights and sounds that only Paris has to offer.”
Snoop Dogg prepared for his guest commentator duties — and perhaps his task as torchbearer — by recently competing in a 200 meter mock race at the US Olympic Team track and field trials in Eugene, Oregon.
The 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris kick off this week, with the opening ceremony going down on Friday. The events run until August 11th.