The Olympic Games return to Paris after a century, which will be the French capital’s third time (1900 and 1924) as host of the Summer Olympic. Like always, the Games promise to be bigger, better and more spectacular than ever before. In addition, Paris Olympic 2024 is also going to be the most sustainable Olympics to date, with great effort undertaken to minimise the environmental impact of the Games.

Set to take place from July 26 to August 11, 2024, this edition of the Summer Olympics will mark the sixth Olympic Games hosted by France (three Summer Olympics and three Winter Olympics). Paris will be the second city to host the Summer Olympics three times, after London, which hosted the 1908, 1948 and 2012 Games.

The Games will certainly be a spectacle not to be missed, since it will bring the best athletes from around the world at many of Paris’ iconic landmarks serving as venues, along with many other eco-friendly sporting complexes.

Let us dive into all that Paris 2024 promises to offer us.

The opening ceremony

During the opening ceremony, people around the world will be treated to a ride along the river Seine, when nearly 100 boats will parade with athletes 10,500 representing 206 different participating nations. The six-kilometre stretch of the Seine that the flotilla will move through will wind through Paris, passing the city’s iconic bridges, landmarks like the Notre-Dame and the Louvre, and Olympic venues such as the Grand Palais.

It will all end near the Eiffel Tower, where the ceremony’s finale and official Olympic protocols will take place. Weather permitting, this will be the first time that the opening ceremony of the Games will take place outside a stadium.

Starting late in the evening, against the backdrop of the setting sun, the ceremony reflects the Paris 2024 organisers’ vision to turn the entire city into a vast Olympic stadium to make it accessible to a larger audience. They are also going to make it the first Opening Ceremony to offer free access to a number of spectators, with the authorities distributing 222,000 free tickets to watch from the upper banks.

Eighty giant screens and speakers placed throughout the city will further allow people to enjoy the magical moments of this ceremony.

Historical and iconic venues

Paris is one of the prettiest cities in the world, with history, art and architecture playing a large role in its attraction to tourists. It is no wonder that the city’s iconic landmarks are going to be utilised as venues for various competitions to make the events more memorable.

River Seine: For the first time, river Seine will be the venue for the marathon swimming and the swimming leg of the triathlon. For months, efforts have been made to make sure the river is clean enough to host these events.

Eiffel Tower: The most well-recognised French landmark will provide a stunning backdrop for the beach volleyball tournament. A temporary 12,000-seat venue has been made in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower, about 400 metres away down Champ de Mars, the grassy park surrounding the landmark.

After both men’s and women’s beach volleyball events during the Olympics, the stadium with be repurposed for blind football during the Paralympics.

Eiffel Tower Stadium events are ticketed, but a bird’s-eye view of the Olympic action can be enjoyed from the three floors of the Eiffel Tower itself.

The Stade de France: This modern stadium, with a capacity of 80,000, will be the central hub for the athletics competitions and the closing ceremony. It has hosted numerous significant events, including the 1998 FIFA World Cup final and UEFA Euro 2016.

Chateau de Versailles: Known as the ‘Palace of Versailles’ in English, this former royal residence and its adjacent gardens will host all three disciplines of equestrian, as well as the show jumping portion of modern pentathlon. It will also host para-equestrian during the 2024 Paralympic Games.

Being a UNESCO World Heritage Site and an Olympic venue is a rare distinction, aptly suitable for a palace that dates to the 17th century and is now a museum.

Grand Palais: This is an exhibition hall and museum complex, on the Champs-Élysées, in central Paris, slated to host a total of 20 fencing and taekwondo events, as well as their Paralympic counterparts during the subsequent Paralympic Games.

Built as an exhibition hall in 1900 and boasts the largest glass roof in Europe and is a masterpiece of Classicism and Art Nouveau, with large stone colonnades and enormous conservatory-style glass roof.

Les Invalides: It will be the backdrop of several events that will take place in the adjacent garden, the Esplanade des Invalides. The grassy Esplanade des Invalides will host the archery and para-archery events, as well as the starting point for the individual time trial in road cycling and the finish of the men’s and women’s marathons.

Les Invalides is a series of buildings that house museums and military monuments, including Napoleon Bonaparte’s tomb. Situated on the Left Bank of the Seine, the extensive complex of 17th-century structures and courtyards was designed for the care and housing of disabled veterans and as a place of worship, but later converted into museums and tombs.

Champs-Élysées: Often referred to as “the most beautiful avenue in the whole world”, it will host the finish line for the cycling events.

A venue overseas!

For the first time in Olympics history, the host city is staging an event in one of its overseas territories, that too 12 time zones away! Yes, Tahiti’s Teahupo’o Beach is set to be the venue for Paris 2024’s surfing competition – one of the most impressive wave destinations in the world.

Surfing was introduced as an Olympic sport in the Tokyo 2020 Games.

The Olympic mascot

Moving away for the usual trend of fashioning the Olympic mascots on animals and creatures, the Paris 2024 organisers selected a hat as their official mascot!

Olympic Phryge is based on the traditional small Phrygian hats once worn by French revolutionaries and is best known from depictions of Marianne, an allegorical figure symbolising liberty whose visage adorns every French town hall. Thus the mascot is a symbol of liberty and freedom.

The Olympic medals

This year’s Olympic medals include a special part of Parisian history, since each Olympic medal is infused with iron from the original Eiffel Tower, which was built for the 1889 World’s Fair. The pieces of iron being used are those cut from parts of the tower that were replaced during renovations over the years and saved.

Winning athletes in both the Paris Paralympics and Olympics will receive these unique creations.

The Green Games

Paris 2024 hopes to be the most sustainable Olympics to date, with elaborate steps undertaken to minimise the environmental impact of the Games by pledging to halve the event’s carbon footprint compared to the average of previous Summer Games.

The organisers claim to host 95% of Paris 2024 events in existing buildings or temporary infrastructure, with only one new competition venue, the Aquatics Centre in Saint-Denis, built for the 2024 Olympic Games. Even this is solar-powered, and uses natural bio-based building and recycled materials.

The organisers also commit to using 100 per cent renewable energy during the Games, with the Athletes’ Village using energy from sources like geothermal and solar power.

In addition, it is reported that athletes will sleep on mattresses made from recycled fishing nets and bed bases from reinforced cardboard.

With Eco-friendly transportation as a priority during the Games and most Olympic venues accessible by public transport, there is emphasis on public transportation, cycling and walking.

Thousands of pay-as-you-go bikes are being made available and 15 million visitors are expected to visit Paris during the Olympics.

Breaking debut

Breaking, or what we call ‘breakdancing’, is an exciting new addition to the Olympic Game. This dynamic and athletic dance form reflects the Olympic movement’s commitment to staying relevant and appealing to younger audiences.

The sports that are not permanent fixtures of the Games but will be returning to Paris including: Skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing.

Published in Dawn, Young World, July 20th, 2024