Marshalls hold umbrellas over mountain bikers' heads before the start of the short-course cross country race. Photo: SW Pix / www.photopsort.nz
Analysis - We were warned about heat waves, organisers were worried about the rain but no one mentioned the wind - or lack of it.
The 2024 Paris Olympics began as the rain fell on the opening ceremony. The show carried on among the rain drops but as soon as the rain showers moved to the west of the city and onto the clay tennis courts of Roland Garros, competition schedules started to be impacted.
New Zealand doubles pairing Erin Routliffe and Lulu Sun had been scheduled to play on the first day of the tennis competition - but the rain delayed their match, and many others, as organisers were forced to call off sessions of play.
The backlog pushed into the second day, and Routliffe and Sun's match was bumped again.
Still, Sun did get to make her Olympic debut in the singles as a last-minute addition to the draw.
Lulu Sun in the first round of the women's singles competition at Roland Garros in Paris. Photo: Iain McGregor / www.photosport.nz
Skateboarding - one of the urban sports that is making a second appearance at an Olympics - was also pushed back by a day, with men's street skateboarding postponed from Saturday (Paris time) until Monday because of the showers.
Skateboarding is held at the outdoor pop-up venue of La Concorde Urban Park in the heart of Paris - a great backdrop if the weather is right.
Triathletes would have watched rain fall as the Games opened and wondered what it meant for them.
The water quality in the River Seine - where the swim leg of the racing will take place - gets worse the more it rains.
The triathletes, including New Zealand's Hayden Wilde, Dylan McCullough, Nicole van der Kaay and Ainsley Thorpe have yet to do their course familiarisation - basically a practice swim - in the controversial river. E coli levels have been too high for the last two days to allow the athletes to take a dip.
Water quality has been poor in the Seine since downpours last week. Photo: AFP / Valentine Chapuis
The familiarisation has been cancelled twice and less than 24 hours out from the men's individual racing they don't know if it'll be safe to race in the Seine.
After Paris spent so much (NZ$2.6bn) trying to clean up the river with new wastewater infrastructure to cut the amounts of sewage flowing into it, organisers will be determined to get the triathletes in there.
A swimmable Seine is a key legacy Games organisers aim to leave behind for Paris residents.
There is, however, a Plan B if the water quality doesn't improve in time - or if the rain returns. Organisers have set aside 2 August as a contingency day for the individual races and 6 August for the mixed relay or these events will become duathlons.
New Zealand Olympic sailor Veerle ten Have. Photo: Brett Phibbs
In the south of France at the sailing venue of Marseille Marina, days of light winds have kept foil sailors Veerle ten Have and Josh Armit grounded and their Olympic programme is quickly getting congested.
At the Olympic outpost of Tahiti, meanwhile, poor conditions delayed six of the round two men's surfing heats as they waited for the waves to improve.
New Zealand's Saffi Vette might have questioned why her heat wasn't called off too, as she waited and waited for a quality wave and ultimately couldn't put up a competitive score.
Surfing the break at Teahupo'o can be as dangerous as it is beautiful - but wind coming from the wrong direction can leave it looking disappointing.
Sign at Roland Garros during the Olympic Games tennis competition. Photo: Felicity Reid/RNZ
Temperatures are beginning to rise in Paris as the thermometer reaches 30 degrees for the first time, on day three of competition.
Ahead of the Games, athletes and officials feared France could experience a repeat of the heat wave that killed thousands last year.
The heat will bring some more challenges. However a group of medical experts working with Paris organisers developed plans to counteract high temperatures and keep competitions safe, the International Olympic Committee said.
Olympic officials also distributed a guide reminding athletes to prepare for the heat.
Wind, rain and fire have already played a part in these Games.
Athletes, organisers and spectators will be waiting to see what happens next.
