Celine Dion is set to perform during the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics on Friday—her first performance since 2022, according to Variety. The singer was diagnosed with Stiff Person Syndrome in December 2022, a neurological disorder that “causes painful muscle contractions and spasms that often begin in the legs and back,” according to Johns Hopkins University. “It’s like somebody is strangling you. It’s like somebody is pushing your larynx/pharynx,” Dion told NBC’s Hoda Kotb in June. “Unfortunately, these spasms affect every aspect of my daily life… sometimes causing difficulties when I walk and not allowing me to use my vocal cords to sing the way I’m used to.” The disorder threw a wrench in her touring schedule. “For four years I’ve been saying to myself that I’m not going back, that I’m ready, that I’m not ready… As things stand, I can’t stand here and say to you: ‘Yes, in four months,’” Dion told Vogue France in April. Dion will reportedly perform during a parade down the Seine, ending near the Trocadéro.
