So Much More Than Sport – Preview of the 2024 Paris Olympics & Paralympics

A century after they were last hosted in Paris, the 2024 Olympics and Paralympics are set to be Games to remember, with many historic firsts: the first Games to introduce Breaking, a competitive form of break dancing; the first Games to achieve gender parity in its events with an equal number of male and female participants; and most controversially, the first Games to host sporting events in venues around the capital, instead of purpose-built stadiums.

The Olympics are always an impressive feat of innovation—a chance for countries to showcase their wealth and prestige to the rest of the world. Despite being postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Tokyo’s Games demonstrated its technological prowess and commitment to sustainability, with inventions such as hydrogen-powered vehicles and medals made from recycled electronics.

The Paris Games are set to take this innovation to new heights with ambitious targets in diverse areas. France clearly aims to break with Olympic tradition by setting new goals in event planning, diversity, and sustainability; targets both praised and censured in the media.

An unmissable event demonstrating that sport is much more than just athletic competition—it's a powerful catalyst for innovation and societal progress.

At add-victor, this is central to our ethos which we apply to the world of work. We believe that sport can offer so much more than athletic victory. It is a launching pad for transferrable skills which are essential in the corporate world. We have helped many former athletes find their dream roles, including ex-Olympic and Paralympic athletes such as sailor Charlotte Dobson (https://add-victor.com/knowledge-hub/blog/blogs/charlotte-dobson-the-olympic-sailor-racing-into-a-new-career), hockey player Kirk Shimmins and volleyball player Shauna Mullin, proving that sport can be the steppingstone for a great career.   

 

What to Look Forward to…

The Olympic Games will take place from 26 July to 11 August, including 45 different sports and 10,500 athletes from 206 different National Olympic Committees, as well as a refugee team, showcasing 329 events. Click here for a detailed schedule for each sport.

The first Paralympic Games in the French capital will run from 28 August to 8 September and will include more than 4,000 athletes from around the world, participating in 549 medal events and showcasing 22 sports, including both individual and team sports. Click here for a detailed schedule for each sport. 

Watch for the medals as there is part of the Iron Lady (the Eiffel Towe) set into them… The metal from the Eiffel Tower is derived from parts of the monument’s structure removed during renovation works during the 20th century.

 

Additions of New Sports

The Olympics will feature 28 returning sports, along with four new additions: Sport climbing, Skateboarding, Surfing, and Breaking. The first three are a continuation of the Tokyo Olympics, while the latter ‘Breaking’ makes its Olympics debut. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) praised their decision, highlighting how it makes the Games “more gender-balanced, more youthful and more urban.”

These new sports are accessible and foster vibrant social media communities. In particular, Breaking is a competitive form of break dancing pioneered by Black and Puerto Rican youth, who formed crews who competed in dance battles on the streets. The athletes, known as "B-Boys" or "B-Girls," earned their title from the expressive dance moves showcased during instrumental breaks in songs. Their inclusion in the Games holds the power to spark inspiration in millions of children to embrace sports.

 

Diversity & Inclusion—New Targets

The upcoming Olympic Games will be the first to have an equal number of men and women athletes. The IOC hopes that this milestone will inspire French society to fight prejudice in sports and encourage women to take a full and active role.

IOC President, Thomas Bach, described this milestone as “one of the most important moments in the history of women at the Olympic Games, and in sport overall”.

In addition, the IOC has announced other initiatives to further support women in sport. One notable project is “Les Kombattantes”, which assists women who experience trauma from sexual violence. The project helps these women rebuild their lives and their self-confidence through sports, allowing them to view their body as sources of resilience and central to their recovery process.

 

Event Planning—Iconic Venues & Opening Ceremony

Perhaps the most exciting development to look forward to this year is the venues. Events will be held at some of Paris' most famous landmarks, such as beach volleyball at the Eiffel Tower, equestrian events at Versailles, and road cycling on the Champs-Élysées. This unique concept places sport literally within a cultural and societal context—athletes will be running in the footsteps of women revolutionaries who marched to Versailles in 1789 demanding bread, and swimmers in the River Seine will be reviving an old-school urban tradition banned since 1923.

Most of the Summer Games will be played within or on the outskirts of the city. Ten of the 35 official venues are outside the host metro area, including in the cities of Nice, Marseille, and Bordeaux. Meanwhile, the surfing competition will take place 10,000 miles away on the waves off the French Polynesian island of Tahiti.

Traditionally, countries hosting the Games organise an opening ceremony in a stadium setting, but Paris is set to turn this on its head. For the first time in history, there are plans to parade a flotilla of boats down the Seine that runs through the heart of the city.

Paris 2024 organisers announced ambitious—and controversial—plans to hold the swimming events of the Olympics and Paralympics triathlons in the Seine, which has been closed to swimming for over a century due to persistent pollution. But even after an extensive and expensive clean-up effort, officials have acknowledged that swimming events planned for the river may have to be postponed or cancelled if the water remains too dirty.

Sustainability Commitments

95% of the Olympics and Paralympics will take place in existing venues, or one of the seven temporary structures crafted for the occasion; typically in an iconic square or in the shadow of a world-famous monument. This is part of Paris 2024’s pledge to halve the Games’ previous carbon footprint and showcase the Games’ incredible innovation in so many ways…

 

Marina Tirado

 

Sources:

• A more inclusive society | Paris 2024. Available at: https://olympics.com/en/paris-2024/our-commitments/promoting-the-role-of-sports/more-inclusive-society (Accessed: 19 June 2024).
• Guzman, C. de (2024) Guide to Paris 2024 summer olympics, Time. Available at: https://time.com/6988148/paris-2024-summer-olympics-guide-when-how-to-watch-games/ (Accessed: 19 June 2024).
• IOC (2023), Innovations set to deliver cinematic experience during Paris 2024. Available at: https://olympics.com/ioc/news/innovations-set-to-deliver-cinematic-experience-during-paris-2024 (Accessed: 19 June 2024).
• Masterson, V. (2024) This year’s Paris Olympics will be the first in history to have full gender parity, World Economic Forum. Available at: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2024/04/paris-olympics-2024-gender-parity/ (Accessed: 19 June 2024).
• Olympic Games | Paris 2024. Available at: https://olympics.com/en/paris-2024/the-games/olympic-paralympic-games/olympic-games (Accessed: 19 June 2024).
• Paris 2024 Olympics - Latest News, Schedules & Results. Available at: https://olympics.com/en/paris-2024/ (Accessed: 17 June 2024).
• Paris 2024: Your daily transport options at the games - athlete365. Available at: https://olympics.com/athlete365/games-time/paris-2024/paris-2024-your-daily-transport-options-at-the-games/ (Accessed: 19 June 2024).
• Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympic Games: IPC International Paralympic Committee. Available at: https://www.paralympic.org/tokyo-2020 (Accessed: 19 June 2024).
• Williams, N. (2024) Nine iconic sites in Paris where Olympic events will be held, BBC News. Available at: https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20240401-nine-iconic-sites-in-paris-where-olympic-events-will-be-held (Accessed: 19 June 2024).