Our correspondent enjoys an empty Champs Élysées, watches a legend and gets a lift from Paris’s volunteers

If you really want to see Paris at its best, I suggest getting up before dawn to head to Pont Alexandre III for triathlons that don’t exist. Pollution concerns had forced all races to be postponed for 24 hours. The decision, however, was made at 3.30am and communicated via the media channels of World Triathlon, to which I am unfortunately not subscribed. Still, alongside a few other bemused punters, I got to see the heart of picture-postcard Paris as the sun came up and walked the length of the Champs Élysées practically alone. Not bad.