The Opera de Paris has lost €2.5 million (£2.1m) in a week due to a rolling strike over its generous pensions system that has led to almost all shows being cancelled as ballet stars in tutus took to the streets. 

The Opera de Paris’s pension regime is one of the oldest in France, dating back to Louis XIV.

It is costly as ballet dancers are allowed to retire at 42 and technical staff can leave with a full pension in the their 50s.

However, their generous regime is one of 42 that are for the chop after President Emmanuel Macron’s controversial shakeup of the French pension system.

Under the new one, rail workers, lawyers, nurses or ballet dancers will pay into the same points-based “universal” scheme that the government insists ends unfair perks and restores equity among retirees.

Staff at the Opera de Paris don’t see it that way and have been on strike along with tens of thousands of other French workers, mainly from the public sector, over the past seven days.

As a result, some 15 opera and ballet shows have been cancelled at the institution’s two venues – Opera Bastille and Palais Garnier – since last Thursday, when the first mass demonstration took place.

Each performance of Alexandre Borodin’s Prince Igor axed at Bastille cost €358,000 in lost ticket sales, confirmed the Opera.

The Opera de Paris and the Comédie Française, France’s prestigious classical theatre company, are the only two such institutions affected by the pension reform.

Around 100 ballet dancers took part in strike demonstrations in Paris on Thursday.

Matthias Bergmann, 57, a video stage manager at the Opera de Paris and unionist with Sud Spectacle, said: “They want to smash our pension regime but the opera is a very complicated machine." 

“Dancers currently retire at 42 because they are physically exhausted and now they want them to retire at 64. Opera technicians work very hard. They should let us retire at 55 and keep things as they are,” he told the Telegraph.

The latest Paris protests came a day after prime minister Edouard Philippe unveiled the details of the pension reform.

He said he hoped it would satisfy unions sufficiently to end a crippling strike that has seen almost all national train journeys axed, along with metro lines and some flights, as well as hundreds of school closures.

However, all the main unions rejected the proposals, with even the moderate ones saying a “red line” had been crossed by raising the de factor retirement age from 62 to 64 by 2027.

The hardline CGT has warned that strike action could continue across the Christmas period, bringing travel misery to millions across the country. 

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Major Update on Possible Names for the Hall of Fame 2017
In addition to Diamond Dallas Page and Rick Rude, Bryan Alvarez of F4WOnline.com has noted that the following names are heavily favoured to be joining the Hall of Fame 2017 – William Regal, Mike Rotunda (IRS), The Natural Disasters (Earthquake & Typhoon) and Christian. It should be noted that these names are not yet confirmed. Two other possible names being tossed around are Bill Goldberg or The Undertaker as being inducted as the headline name.
WWE Interested in Signing ROH Star

As has been previously reported, Kyle O’Reilly’s contract with Ring of Honor expired at the end of December with all fingers seemingly pointing towards him joining the WWE. 
It should be noted that O’Reilly has since been removed from the ROH roster page and pulled from all upcoming events in Atlanta. This is the strongest indication yet that we may see him pop up in the WWE in the not so distant future.
However, as of writing it is not known as to whether he will head to NXT or debut on the main roster. With the Royal Rumble around the corner, the company could be looking to throw him into the match as a surprise entrant.

Minnesota Storm wrestler Andy Bisek 74 kg Greco-Roman matches at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary on September 22, 2013. Bisek went 1-1.

Andy Bisek of USA vs Balint Korpasi of Hungary:

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Andy Bisek of USA vs Emrah Kus of Turkey:

– Above and below are new TNA Shop promos from Don West, who is back to work with the company.

– Tonight’s TNA Impact Wrestling will have a “Race To The Case” theme as they build to the upcoming Genesis and Open Fight Night episodes. 12 competitors will battle in the ring for 4 briefcases that will grant them title matches in the future. TNA has full details on the concept at this link.

Impact tonight will also feature Moose defending the Impact Grand Title against Drew Galloway, plus Brooke Tessmacher’s return to the ring.

Below is a “Race To The Case” promo:

Follow Marc on Twitter at @this_is_marc. Send any news, tips or corrections to us by clicking here.

WWE Considering Big Turn, Must See New Maryse & Noelle Foley, Triple H Ready to Push Former TNA Star on RAW, WrestleMania 33 Main Events, WWE Star Gets Backstage Heat, New GIFs & Galleries, More

– As seen below, the latest Canvas 2 Canvas video from WWE artist Rob Schamberger features 2017 WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle:

– WWE announced 52,020 fans in attendance for last night’s Rumble pay-per-view at The Alamodome. They announced 60,477 fans for the 1997 Rumble from the same venue.

– There were issues with new sign-ups on the WWE Network going into tonight’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view. Michael Cole noted on the pre-show that the issues were resolved before the pre-show was over and WWE Network tweeted the following:

(1/2) Due to extraordinarily high demand, some fans may have experienced an issue signing up for @WWENetwork.
— WWE Network (@WWENetwork) January 30, 2017

Follow Marc on Twitter at @this_is_marc. Send any news, tips or corrections to us by clicking here.

WWE Considering Big Turn, Must See New Maryse & Noelle Foley, Triple H Ready to Push Former TNA Star on RAW, WrestleMania 33 Main Events, WWE Star Gets Backstage Heat, New GIFs & Galleries, More

– The Bella Twins discuss their new Birdiebee brand for women in this new video:

– A new episode of “Legends with JBL” will premiere on the WWE Network tomorrow at 3pm EST. His guest will be WWE Hall of Famer Stan Hansen. Below is the synopsis:

“WWE Hall of Famer, Stan Hansen discusses everything from breaking Bruno Sammartino’s neck, to his rivalry with Andre the Giant!”

– As seen below, Triple H is sending a custom WWE Title to the New England Patriots for winning last night’s NFL Super Bowl 51:

A never-say-quit team, a football dynasty, and an amazing #SB51.
Congrats @Patriots, this title is coming to New England!! pic.twitter.com/rRBV2bYxjF
— Triple H (@TripleH) February 6, 2017

Follow Marc on Twitter at @this_is_marc. Send any news, tips or corrections to us by clicking here.

WWE Considering Big Turn, Must See New Maryse & Noelle Foley, Triple H Ready to Push Former TNA Star on RAW, WrestleMania 33 Main Events, WWE Star Gets Backstage Heat, New GIFs & Galleries, More