Céline Dion Sings Moving Rendition of 'Hymne A L'Amour' in Comeback Performance at Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony

All eyes were on Céline Dion at the 2024 Paris Olympics opening ceremony as she made her long-awaited comeback.

On Friday, July 26, the iconic musician, 56, closed out the day-long event with a stunning rendition of Édith Piaf's song "Hymne A L'Amour" (Hymn to Love), which she sang live from the base of the Eiffel Tower.

The legendary performer sparkled from head to toe in a gorgeous long-sleeve white Dior gown as she flawlessly belted out her impeccable vocals over a piano arrangement.

This marks Dion's first live performance since her August 2022 stiff-person syndrome diagnosis, which she opened up about in-depth in her Prime Video documentary, I Am: Céline Dion, released last month. She previously performed Piaf's song at the 2015 American Music Awards in honor of the victims of the horrific terror attacks at the Bataclan concert hall in France that same year.

French broadcasters confirmed Dion's involvement shortly before the opening ceremonies began on Friday, jokingly calling the news the "worst kept secret." Earlier in the week, the "All By Myself" star was photographed greeting fans outside the Royal Monceau Hotel in the French capital, fueling rumors of her anticipated performance.

Dion's musical return at the Summer Olympics took place after Lady Gaga kicked things off at the Seine River earlier in the day with a rendition of "Mon Truc en Plumes." The latter's performance followed a string of rumors that sparked after the "Bad Romance" singer, 38, was spotted in Paris days ahead of the opening ceremonies.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Though Dion's comeback performance at the opening ceremony had already been teased by Variety earlier this week, her appearance on Friday still came as a shock, as she shared in an April interview with Vogue France that she wasn't sure when she would ever perform live again.

"I can't answer that… Because for four years I've been saying to myself that I'm not going back, that I'm ready, that I'm not ready," the performer said of her stage return. "As things stand, I can't stand here and say to you: 'Yes, in four months.' I don't know... My body will tell me."

"On the other hand, I don't just want to wait," Dion added. "It's morally hard to live from day to day. It's hard, I'm working very hard and tomorrow will be even harder. Tomorrow is another day. But there's one thing that will never stop, and that's the will. It's the passion. It's the dream. It's the determination."

To learn more about all the Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls, come to people.com to check out ongoing coverage before, during and after the games. And sign up for Going for Gold, our Olympics newsletter, to get the biggest stories from the Games delivered straight to your inbox. Watch the Paris Olympics and Paralympics, beginning July 26, on NBC and Peacock