The 2024 Paris Olympics, scheduled for July 26-August 11, are set to take the world by storm.
This will be the first Olympics in Paris in more than 100 years. The first time Paris hosted the Games was in 1900 and then again in 1924, joining London as the only city to host the Games three times.
The Paris 2024 opening ceremony will take place on July 26. Notably July 27, 1924, was the closing day for the 1924 Paris Olympics.
The opening ceremony will be a first-of-its-kind boat parade on the Seine River.
With 10,672 athletes from 206 nations competing in 329 events across 32 sports, this post-pandemic spectacle promises to be the biggest and most inclusive Olympics yet making Paris Olympics gender-neutral.
Where is the opening ceremony?
The opening ceremony is scheduled to kick off on Friday, July 26, in Paris, at 11 PM IST.
For the first time, the ceremony isn’t taking place at an Olympic stadium. The athletes will be carried on boats in a flotilla on the River Seine instead.
Over 300,000 spectators will enjoy the event at bleachers – an outdoor seating system – stationed along the riverbanks.
The procession will end at the Jardins du Trocadero, where the final elements of the opening ceremony will take place.
The Mascot
The official mascot for the Paris Olympics is the Phrygian hat, a historic headgear worn by French revolutionaries. It is called “freege” colloquially.
The name and design were chosen as symbols of freedom and to represent allegorical figures of the French Republic.
Phryge, the Mascot for Paris Olympics.
The Medals
This year’s Olympic medals feature a unique piece of Parisian history.
Each Olympic medal will be infused with iron from the original Eiffel Tower, constructed for the 1889 World’s Fair.
The iron pieces were kept after being cut from tower components that had been rebuilt during restorations throughout the years.
To create these medals, the Olympics took the help of Chaumet, a French luxury jewellery maker, to infuse 18 grams of iron from the Eiffel Tower into various silver, gold, and bronze medals.
These unique artworks will be presented to winning athletes at the Paris Paralympics and the Olympics.
Each Paris Olympics medal will have 18grams of iron from Eiffel tower.
New sports and events
Paris 2024 will see the introduction of a new sport and an event.
Breaking will be the sole new sport for Paris 2024, comprising two events – one for men and one for women, where the participants will face themselves in solo battles.
Canoe slalom will feature a thrilling new discipline called Extreme Slalom, where four athletes race down a course simultaneously.
Sailing will welcome two new categories, IQFoil (windsurfing) and formula kite.
Athletics, shooting, and sailing will each debut a new mixed event: the 35km walking mixed relay, the Skeet mixed team event, and the mixed Dinghy respectively.
The venues
The Paris Olympics will utilise 35 diverse venues across France.
While most events will be held in and around Paris, some competitions will take place in other cities like Marseille, Lyon, Chateauroux, and Bordeaux.
In a commendable effort towards sustainability, Paris 2024 organisers have prioritised using existing facilities over constructing new ones.
Iconic venues like the Stade de France will host athletics and rugby sevens, while the renowned Stade Roland Garros will showcase tennis and boxing.
Swimming will be divided between the Paris La Defense Arena and the Paris Aquatic Centre.
Some events will occur at iconic Parisian landmarks, such as beach volleyball under the Eiffel Tower.
Basketball 3×3, BMX Freestyle, Breaking, Skateboarding Street, and Skateboarding at La Concorde.
Fencing and taekwondo will be held at the Grand Palais, and the Marathon will take place at the Hotel de Ville.
The Games will go beyond Paris, with football matches taking place across stadiums belonging to popular clubs across the country, sailing in Marseille, and surfing in Tahiti, a French island situated over 15,000km from the capital.
Where to watch the Paris Olympics 2024?
Jio Cinema and Sports18 TV network will stream and broadcast the Paris Olympics for free in India.
For the first time in history, Olympic coverage will have a dedicated “India Feed” to follow India’s events with 20 Concurrent feeds.
Also, The Bridge will bring extensive coverage of the Games, comprising live blogs.
What is the Olympics 2024 schedule?
The Olympic schedule always changes due to events going over time and unforeseen incidents. Viewers can find the official schedule for the Olympics on the official website.
However, you can find the schedule for the Indian contingent here.
How to buy tickets?
At this point, resold tickets are the only ones available. Luckily, there is an official resale platform so people with tickets they can’t use can sell them on the official website.