Real reason why Celine Dion's voice will sound different at Olympics comeback

Celine Dion is set to be making her highly anticipated return to music at the Olympic opening ceremony but fans have raised concerns that her voice could sound different.

I Am: Celine Dion teased in trailer from Prime Video

Celine Dion has got fans roaring and ready for her return to music and performing.

The 56-year-old music icon has been confirmed to be one of the stars headlining the 2024 Olympic opening ceremony in Paris on Friday night.

She is believed to be duetting with fellow pop megastar Lady Gaga to perform a joint rendition of Edith Piaf's classic La Vie en Rose.

While this is no debatably exciting news for fans, it has been no secret that the My Heart Will Go On singer's voice has changed slightly over the years - and it is expected to sound a little different when she performs at the ceremony tonight.

Here's why Celine's voice doesn't sound like it once used to...

In 2022 the singer went public with her tragic Stiff Person Syndrome diagnosis, a rare and incurable neurological disorder that affects her ability to sing and walk.

Celine Dion performing

Celine Dion performing at the 2016 Billboard Awards (Image: Getty)

In a post on Instagram, Celine said that she had been diagnosed with stiff person syndrome, or SPS, which is believed to impact around one or two people per million.

“As you know, I’ve always been an open book," she wrote at the time, adding: "And I wasn’t ready to say anything before — but I’m ready now. I’ve been dealing with problems with my health for a long time.

"And it’s been really difficult for me to face these challenges and talk about everything that I’ve been going through," she

Stiff Person Syndrome causes rigid muscles throughout the body, as well as a heightened sensitivity to light and noise. concluded.

These spasms can also affect the muscles near her vocal cords - resulting in Celine's powerful voice sounding slightly different.

"The 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," Celine explained in her diagnosis announcement.

Dr. Marinos Dalakas, a professor of neurology at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, also described how the condition can impact someone's voice.

"When this affects the diaphragm or affects the laryngeal muscles or the vocal cord muscles, the voice becomes very thin, it doesn't come out strong, it is fragmented," he told CTVNews.

Individually, these spasms can be caused by a variety of things, such as external factors like loud noises, stress, and bright lights, but DR. Dalakas noted they can also impact specific muscles and not the whole body.

Celine crying

Celine opened up about her journey with Stiff Person Syndrome during her recent Amazon Prime doc (Image: Amazon Prime Video)

Tara Zier, who was diagnosed with Stiff Person Syndrome in 2027, detailed her own experience when the condition impacted her vocal cords.

"It's kind of a hoarseness," Tara told CTVNews, adding: "It's a little bit different than a cold, where it almost feels restricted, like tight, a little bit of a restricted airway."

Despite her SPS diagnosis, Celine vowed to continue singing and it is apparent she has stuck to her promise by not letting the disease stand in her way.

"Cause you don’t have to move a mountain, just keep moving, every move is a new emotion, and you don’t have to find the answers, just keep trying," a defiant Celine once said.

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