Mystery masked Olympic torchbearer revealed in deleted Instagram post

The masked Olympic torchbearer was a closely guarded secret as Paris 2024 officials opted to keep the identity a mystery during the opening ceremony.

Wearing an outfit inspired by Arno, the famous character from the video game Assassin’s Creed Unity, the mysterious acrobat was seen jumping their way through the streets of Paris and around the iconic monuments throughout the Olympic opening ceremony on Friday night.

The mystery figure finally emerged through a trapdoor on stage at the Trocadero to hand the torch over to former France and Real Madrid midfielder Zinedine Zidane.

Viewers were undoubtedly hoping that the masked torchbearer who featured prominently throughout the four-hour ceremony would be unveiled to the public.

But they were left disappointed as the mystery acrobat simply walked off stage after handing over the torch to Zidane.

Who was the masked Olympic torchbearer?
The mystery was finally solved on Saturday when Simon Nogueira, a French free-running champion, revealed he was at least one of the people who played the role during the opening ceremony.

Simon Nogueira deleted a picture of himself dressed as the masked Olympic torchbearer (Instagram)

Nogueira posted on Instagram: ‘I obviously wasn’t everywhere. Other incredible artists also hid on this character.’

He accompanied the post with stories from the rooftops of Paris, however, he then went on to delete all of his posts.

Nogueira, 27, has also helped create an exhibition called ‘The Path is Clear’ at the Galerie La Lison in Paris which is running throughout the Olympics and is a series of photographs captured on the Parisian rooftops.

Clement Dumais, the 2019 Chase Tag World Champion and seven-time Ninja Warrior finalist, also revealed on X: ‘For the part on the roofs, it was obviously the goat Simon Nogueira.’

Dumais distanced himself from suggestions that he was involved after he initially posted a picture on X of the masked torchbearer with the words: ‘I hope you enjoyed this opening ceremony.’

In response to fans asking if he was the torchbearer, Dumais said: ‘Relax, I didn’t say it was me, I will do a live in one year to tell you the truth.

‘In all, there were 12 of them playing the character!’

Zidane, who went on to pass the torch to Spanish tennis legend Rafael Nadal in an iconic moment, posted an image of himself during the ceremony on Instagram with the message: ‘Magical and unforgettable moment, Thank you!