The 2024 Summer Olympics, officially known as officially known as the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad (Les Jeux olympiques d'été de 2024), were an international multi-sport event scheduled that was held from 26 July to 11 August 2024 in Paris, France. Having previously hosted the 1900 and the 1924 Summer Olympics, Paris became the second city after London (1908, 1948 and 2012) to host the Olympic Games three times. 2024 also marked the centennial of the 1924 Summer Olympics, which were held in the same city and was the last time Paris held the Olympic Games.
Bidding to host the Games started in 2015 with five candidate cities in contention, but Hamburg, Rome and Budapest withdrew, leaving Paris and Los Angeles as the remaining candidates. On 11 July, a proposal to elect the 2024 and 2028 Olympic host cities at the same time was approved by an Extraordinary IOC Session on 11 July 2017 in Lausanne.[1] On 31 July 2017, the IOC made a deal with Los Angeles to host the 2028 Summer Olympics, which made Paris the host of the 2024 Summer Olympics.[2] The formal announcement of the hosts for both Olympiads took place at the 131st IOC Session in Lima, Peru, on 13 September 2017.[3]
Bidding[]
Paris, Hamburg, Budapest, Rome and Los Angeles were the five candidate cities. However, the process was hit by withdrawals, with political uncertainty and cost cited as deterring bidding cities.[4] Hamburg withdrew its bid on 29 November 2015 after holding a referendum. Rome withdrew its bid on 21 September 2016 citing fiscal difficulties.[5] On 22 February 2017, Budapest withdrew its bid after a petition against the bid collected more signatures than necessary for a referendum.[6][7][8]
Following these withdrawals, the IOC Executive Board met in Lausanne, Switzerland to discuss the 2024 and 2028 bid processes on 9 June 2017.[9] The International Olympic Committee formally proposed electing the 2024 and 2028 Olympic host cities at the same time in 2017, a proposal which was approved by an Extraordinary IOC Session on 11 July 2017 in Lausanne.[1] The IOC set up a process where the LA and Paris 2024 bid committees, and the IOC held meetings to discuss who would host in 2024 and who would host in 2028.[10]
Following the decision to award the 2024 and 2028 Games simultaneously, Paris was understood to be the preferred host for the 2024 Games. On 31 July 2017, the IOC announced Los Angeles as the sole candidate for the 2028 Games, opening Paris up to be confirmed as hosts for the 2024 Games. Both decisions were ratified at the 131st IOC Session on 13 September 2017.[11]
| Voting results for the 2024 Summer Olympic Games | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| City | Country | Round 1 | ||
| Paris | France | Internal selection | ||
| Los Angeles | United States | Assigned Los Angeles 2028 | ||
Venues[]
Most of the Olympic events will be held in the city of Paris and its metropolitan region, including the neighbouring cities of Saint-Denis, Le Bourget, Nanterre, Versailles, and Vaires-sur-Marne.
The basketball preliminaries and handball finals will be held in Lille, which is 225 km (140 mi) from the host city; the sailing and some football games will be held in the Mediterranean city of Marseille, which is 777 km (483 mi) from the host city; meanwhile, the surfing events are expected to be held in Teahupo'o village in the overseas territory of French Polynesia, which is 15,716 km (9,765 mi) from Paris, the host city. Football will also be hosted in another five cities, which are Bordeaux, Décines-Charpieu (Lyon), Nantes, Nice and Saint-Étienne, some of which are home to Ligue 1 clubs.
Grand Paris zone[]
| Venue | Events | Capacity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Le Bourget Sport Climbing Venue | Sport climbing | 5,000 | Temporary |
| North Paris Arena | Boxing (preliminaries and quarterfinals) | 6,000 | Existing |
| Modern pentathlon (fencing rounds) | |||
| Paris Aquatics Centre | Artistic swimming | 5,000 | Additional |
| Diving | |||
| Water polo (preliminaries) | |||
| Paris La Defense Arena | Swimming | 15,220 | Existing |
| Water polo (finals) | |||
| Porte de La Chapelle Arena | Badminton | 8,000 | Existing |
| Gymnastics (rhythmic) | |||
| Stade de France | Athletics (track and field) | 77,083 | Existing |
| Closing ceremony | |||
| Rugby sevens | |||
| Yves-du-Manoir Stadium | Field hockey | 15,000 | Renovated |
Paris Centre zone[]
| Venue | Events | Capacity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bercy Arena | Basketball (finals) | 15,000 | Existing |
| Gymnastics (artistic and trampoline) | |||
| Champs de Mars Arena | Judo | 9,000 | Temporary |
| Wrestling | |||
| Eiffel Tower Stadium | Beach volleyball | 12,000 | Temporary |
| Grand Palais | Fencing | 8,000 | Existing |
| Taekwondo | |||
| Hotel de Ville | Athletics (marathon start) | 1,500 | Temporary |
| Invalides | Archery | 8,000 | Temporary |
| Athletics (marathon finish) | |||
| Cycling (road time trial start) | |||
| La Concorde | Basketball (3x3 tournament) | 30,000 | Temporary |
| Breaking | |||
| Cycling (BMX park) | |||
| Skateboarding | |||
| Pont Alexandre III | Cycling (road time trial finish) | 1,500 | Temporary |
| Marathon swimming | |||
| Triathlon | |||
| Pont d'Iena | Athletics (race walk) | 13,000 (3,000 sitting) |
Temporary |
| Cycling (road) | |||
| Roland Garros Stadium | Boxing (finals) | 36,000 | Existing |
| Tennis | |||
| Seine River | Opening ceremony | 30,000 | Temporary |
| South Paris Arena | Handball (preliminaries) | 18,000 | Existing |
| Table tennis | |||
| Volleyball | |||
| Weightlifting | |||
| Trocadero | Opening ceremony | 300,000 | Temporary |
Versailles zone[]
| Venue | Events | Capacity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elancourt Hill | Cycling (mountain biking) | 25,000 | Existing |
| Golf National | Golf | 35,000 | Existing |
| Palace of Versailles | Equestrian | 80,000 (22,000 + 58,000) |
Temporary |
| Modern pentathlon (except fencing) | |||
| Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines Velodrome | Cycling (BMX race) | 10,000 | Existing |
| Cycling (track) |
Outlying venues[]
| Venue | Events | Capacity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chateauroux Shooting Centre | Shooting | 3,000 | Existing |
| Marseille Marina | Sailing | 5,000 | Existing |
| Pierre Mauroy Stadium | Basketball (group stage) | 26,000 | Existing |
| Handball (finals) | |||
| Teahupo'o | Surfing | 5,000 | Existing |
| Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium | Canoeing | 22,000 | Existing |
| Rowing |
Football venues[]
- Allianz Riviera, 36,178, Nice, (group stage)
- Beaujoire Stadium, 35,322, Nantes, (group stage, men's bronze medal match)
- Geoffroy-Guichard Stadium, 41,965, Saint-Étienne, (group stage)
- Groupama Stadium, 59,186, Lyon, (group stage, men's quarterfinals, women's semifinals, women's bronze medal match)
- Matmut Atlantique Stadium, 42,115, Bordeaux, (group stage, men's quarterfinals)
- Orange Velodrome, 67,394, Marseille, (group stage, men's and women's quarterfinals, men's semifinals)
- Parc des Princes, 47,929, Paris (group stage, men's and women's quarterfinals, finals)
Marketing[]
Emblem[]
The emblem for the 2024 Summer Olympics and Paralympics was unveiled on 21 October 2019 at the Grand Rex. It is a representation of Marianne, the national personification of France, with a flame formed in negative space by its hair. The emblem also resembles a gold medal. Tony Estanguet explained that the emblem's symbolism was meant to reflect the core concepts of "the power and the magic of the Games", sport, and being "for people". For the first time, the 2024 Summer Paralympics will share the same logo as their corresponding Olympics with no difference, reflecting a shared "ambition" between both events.
Medals[]
Paris 2024 president Tony Estanguet unveiled the Olympic and Paralympic medals for the Games in February 2024, which on the obverse featured embedded hexagon-shaped tokens of scrap iron that had been taken from the original construction of the Eiffel Tower, with the Games logo engraved into it. Approximately 5,084 medals would be produced by the French mint Monnaie de Paris, and were designed by Chaumet, a luxury jewellery firm based in Paris.[12]
The reverse of the medals features Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, inside the Panathenaikos Stadium which hosted the first modern Olympics in 1896. Parthenon and the Eiffel Tower can also be seen in the background on both sides of the medal.[13] Each medal weighs 455–529 g (16–19 oz), has a diameter of 85 mm (3.3 in) and is 9.2 mm (0.36 in) thick.[14] The gold medals are made with 98.8 percent silver and 1.13 percent gold, while the bronze medals are made up with copper, zinc, and tin.[12]
Torch[]
The Olympic torch was lit on 16 April 2024 in Olympia, Greece before arriving at Athens on 26 April. It sailed across the Mediterranean on the three-masted barque Belem to Marseille on 9 May and subsequently began its travel across Metropolitan and Overseas France along a small stepover in Monaco. The French leg will end during the opening ceremony when it will be used to light the Olympic cauldron. The Paris 2024 cauldron will be erected at the Jardins du Trocadéro stadium.
Torch relay[]
The Olympic torch relay began with the lighting of the Olympic flame on 16 April in Olympia, Greece, 100 days before the start of the Games. Greek rower and single sculls champion Stefanos Ntouskos was the first torchbearer and swimmer Laure Manaudou served as the first French torchbearer. The latter was selected to be one of four captains of the torch relay, along with swimmer and her brother Florent Manaudou, paratriathlete Mona Francis, and para-athlete Dimitri Pavadé.[15] The torch relay is expected to have 10,000 torchbearers and visit over 400 settlements in 65 French territories, including six overseas. On 18 May, the portion of the relay in New Caledonia was reportedly cancelled due to ongoing unrest in the collectivity.[16]
Opening ceremony[]
The opening ceremony began at 19:30 (CEST, GMT+2) on 26 July 2024. The ceremony was tentatively scheduled to take place outside a traditional stadium setting for the first time, with plans for the parade of nations that was conducted as a boat parade along the Seine River from Pont d'Austerlitz to Pont d'Iena, and the official protocol to take place at Place du Trocadéro in a temporary "mini-stadium". The 6-kilometre (3.7-mile) parade route would feature cultural presentations and views of Paris landmarks. The ceremonies of the 2024 Summer Olympics will be directed by Thomas Jolly.[17][18]
Organizers have promoted the ceremony as "the most spectacular and accessible opening ceremony in Olympic history", with Paris 2024 president Tony Estanguet stating that it would be free to attend, estimating that it could attract as many as 600,000 spectators—exemplifying an overall goal for Paris 2024 to be a "people's Olympics". There will be 100,000 ticketed spectators at viewing spots on the lower banks of the Seine, and approximately 200,000 spectators at free viewing spots on the upper banks (in addition to being visible from other public locations and buildings). In March 2024, due to security concerns, the French government ordered that access to the upper bank locations be by invitation only, and in April 2024, Emmanuel Macron, the president of France, stated that the ceremony could be scaled back or held in a conventional manner at Stade de France, if necessary.[19]
Closing ceremony[]
The closing ceremony was held at Stade de France on 11 August 2024. The ceremony was titled “Records”, and was set to feature more than a hundred performers, including acrobats, dancers, and circus artists, all took place on a 2,800 square-metre stage.[20]. The Mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo will then hand it over to IOC President Thomas Bach who will then hand it over to the mayor of Los Angeles Karen Bass whose city will host the 2028 Summer Olympics and the extinguishing of the flame. The Olympic Flag will be raised again in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo for the 2026 Winter Olympics. The opening ceremony will take place in Milan on 6 February 2026.
Sports[]
The programme of the 2024 Summer Olympics will feature 329 events in 32 sports, including the 28 core Olympic sports contested in 2016 and 2020, and four optional sports proposed by the Paris Organizing Committee: breaking will make its Olympic debut as an optional sport, while skateboarding, sport climbing, and surfing will return from 2020.[21][22] Four events have been dropped from weightlifting. In canoeing, two sprint events have been replaced with two slalom events, keeping the overall total at 16. In sport climbing, the previous "combined" event has been divided into separate speed climbing and boulder and lead disciplines for each gender.
Medal table[]
| Rank | Country | 
|
|
|
Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States | 40 | 44 | 42 | 126 |
| 2 | China | 40 | 27 | 24 | 91 |
| 3 | Japan | 20 | 12 | 13 | 45 |
| 4 | Australia | 18 | 19 | 16 | 53 |
| 5 | France | 16 | 26 | 22 | 64 |
| 6 | Netherlands | 15 | 7 | 12 | 34 |
| 7 | Great Britain | 14 | 22 | 29 | 65 |
| 8 | South Korea | 13 | 9 | 10 | 32 |
| 9 | Italy | 12 | 13 | 15 | 40 |
| 10 | Germany | 12 | 13 | 8 | 33 |
| 11 | New Zealand | 10 | 7 | 3 | 20 |
| 12 | Canada | 9 | 7 | 11 | 27 |
| 13 | Uzbekistan | 8 | 2 | 3 | 13 |
| 14 | Hungary | 6 | 7 | 6 | 19 |
| 15 | Spain | 5 | 4 | 9 | 18 |
| 16 | Sweden | 4 | 4 | 3 | 11 |
| 17 | Kenya | 4 | 2 | 5 | 11 |
| 18 | Norway | 4 | 1 | 3 | 8 |
| 19 | Ireland | 4 | 0 | 3 | 7 |
| 20 | Brazil | 3 | 7 | 10 | 20 |
| 21 | Iran | 3 | 6 | 3 | 12 |
| 22 | Ukraine | 3 | 5 | 4 | 12 |
| 23 | Romania | 3 | 4 | 2 | 9 |
| 24 | Georgia | 3 | 3 | 1 | 7 |
| 25 | Belgium | 3 | 1 | 6 | 10 |
| 26 | Bulgaria | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 |
| 27 | Serbia | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| 28 | Czech Republic | 3 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| 29 | Denmark | 2 | 2 | 5 | 9 |
| 30 | Azerbaijan | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7 |
| 30 | Croatia | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7 |
| 32 | Cuba | 2 | 1 | 6 | 9 |
| 33 | Bahrain | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 34 | Slovenia | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| 35 | Chinese Taipei | 2 | 0 | 5 | 7 |
| 36 | Austria | 2 | 0 | 3 | 5 |
| 37 | Hong Kong | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| 37 | Philippines | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| 39 | Algeria | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 39 | Indonesia | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 41 | Israel | 1 | 5 | 1 | 7 |
| 42 | Poland | 1 | 4 | 5 | 10 |
| 43 | Kazakhstan | 1 | 3 | 3 | 7 |
| 44 | Jamaica | 1 | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| 44 | South Africa | 1 | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| 44 | Thailand | 1 | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| — | Individual Neutral Athletes | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| 47 | Ethiopia | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| 48 | Switzerland | 1 | 2 | 5 | 8 |
| 49 | Ecuador | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| 50 | Portugal | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| 51 | Greece | 1 | 1 | 6 | 8 |
| 52 | Argentina | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 52 | Egypt | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 52 | Tunisia | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 55 | Botswana | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 55 | Chile | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 55 | Saint Lucia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 55 | Uganda | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 59 | Dominican Republic | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 60 | Guatemala | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 60 | Morocco | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 62 | Dominica | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 62 | Pakistan | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 64 | Turkey | 0 | 3 | 5 | 8 |
| 65 | Mexico | 0 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
| 66 | Armenia | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| 66 | Colombia | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| 68 | Kyrgyzstan | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| 68 | North Korea | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| 70 | Lithuania | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| 71 | India | 0 | 1 | 5 | 5 |
| 72 | Moldova | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 73 | Kosovo | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 74 | Cyprus | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 74 | Fiji | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 74 | Jordan | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 74 | Mongolia | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 74 | Panama | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 79 | Tajikistan | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| 80 | Albania | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 80 | Grenada | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 80 | Malaysia | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 80 | Puerto Rico | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 84 | Cape Verde | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 84 | Ivory Coast | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 84 | Peru | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 84 | Qatar | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 84 | Refugee Olympic Team | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 84 | Singapore | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 84 | Slovakia | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 84 | Zambia | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Controversies[]
The Last Supper allegedly mocked[]
Conservative and Christian extremists have accused the Olympics for mocking the Last Supper[23], especially with drag queens. One of the queens decided to file a lawsuit for libel.[24]
South Korea mistakenly introduced as its neighbour[]
During the opening ceremony, South Korea was mistakenly introduced as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, causing outrage among citizens of South Korea.[25]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 IOC Executive Board approve joint awarding plans for 2024 and 2028 Olympics. Inside the Games (9 June 2017).
- ↑ Los Angeles makes deal to host 2028 Summer Olympics. Retrieved on 31 July 2017.
- ↑ Olympic Games: Paris & LA to host 2024 & 2028 respectively. Retrieved on 16 September 2017.
- ↑ Exclusive: IOC vow to "further adjust" candidature process after Budapest 2024 withdrawal. Inside the Games. Retrieved on 1 August 2017.
- ↑ Rome 2024 Olympic bid collapses in acrimony. BBC News (21 September 2016). Retrieved on 7 July 2024.
- ↑ 2024 Olympics: Budapest to drop bid to host Games. BBC (22 February 2017). Archived from the original on 23 February 2017.
- ↑ "Budapest Withdraws Bid to Host 2024 Summer Olympics", The New York Times, 22 February 2017. Retrieved on 23 February 2017.
- ↑ "Budapest to withdraw bid for 2024 Olympics, leaving L.A. and Paris as only contenders", Los Angeles Times, February 2017. Retrieved on 22 February 2017.
- ↑ Meeting of the IOC Executive Board in Lausanne – Information for the media. Olympic.org (19 May 2017). Archived from the original on 22 June 2017.
- ↑ Bach Says Paris and LA Mayors Are 'Optimistic' About Agreement After Initial Discussions - GamesBids.com.
- ↑ Paris set to host 2024 Olympics, Los Angeles to be awarded 2028 Games by IOC. ABC News. Retrieved on 1 August 2017.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Theissen, Marion. "Paris 2024: the Olympic and Paralympic medals have been revealed", International Olympic Committee, 8 February 2024. Retrieved on 7 July 2024.
- ↑ "Paris Olympic and Paralympic medals will contain chunks of Eiffel Tower", The Guardian, 8 February 2024. Retrieved on 7 July 2024.
- ↑ "Paris 2024: First look at Olympic and Paralympic medals featuring chunks of Eiffel Tower", Sky News, 8 February 2024. Retrieved on 7 July 2024.
- ↑ Rubio Salguero, David. "Laure Manaudou, the first French torchbearer in Olympia", Inside the Games, 16 April 2024. Retrieved on 7 July 2024.
- ↑ "New Caledonia removed from Olympic torch's route following unrest", Le Monde, 18 May 2024. Retrieved on 7 July 2024.
- ↑ Barker, Phillip. "Paris 2024 names artistic director for Opening Ceremony on River Seine", Inside the Games, 21 September 2022. Retrieved on 7 July 2024.
- ↑ "French stage director Thomas Jolly to direct opening and closing ceremonies for 2024 Paris Olympics", ESPN, 21 September 2022. Retrieved on 7 July 2024.
- ↑ "Paris Olympics opening ceremony on the Seine could move for security reasons, says Macron", France 24, 15 April 2024. Retrieved on 7 July 2024.
- ↑ May, Sam. "Paris 2024: Closing ceremony of Olympics revealed", Inside the Games, 5 July 2024. Retrieved on 7 July 2024.
- ↑ "Olympic Games: Breakdancing takes step closer to Paris 2024 inclusion", BBC News, 25 June 2019. Retrieved on 7 July 2024.
- ↑ Diamond, James. "Two phase selection process confirmed for new Paris 2024 sports but esports will not be considered", Inside the Games, 19 July 2018. Retrieved on 7 July 2024.
- ↑ Stechyson, Natalia. "Olympic organizers apologize, but say 'Last Supper' drag tableau was a 'message of love'", Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, 29 July 2024. Retrieved on 12 August 2024.
- ↑ Henley, Jon. "Olympic ‘drag queen scene’ DJ files legal complaint after torrent of online abuse", The Guardian, 30 July 2024. Retrieved on 12 August 2024.
- ↑ "Olympics organisers 'deeply apologise' for mistakenly calling South Korea North Korea during opening ceremony", Sky News, 27 July 2024. Retrieved on 12 August 2024.