Paris 2024 : A revolutionary experience

Paris 2024 is revolutionising the Olympic experience by offering everyone the opportunity, for the first time ever, to be more than just a spectator or a viewer and play an actual part. Paris 2024 is also submitting a proposal to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for the inclusion of four new sports that all embody youth, elite performance, spectacular experiences and inclusiveness.
 
This latest phase is a milestone both for Paris 2024 and Olympism itself. With today’s announcement of a ground-breaking sports experience at Paris La Défense Arena, which will host the gymnastics events at the 2024 Games, Paris 2024 is demonstrating its ambition to stage truly unique, accessible and popular Games that extends beyond the stadiums and engages with people, Games that offers a hitherto unseen level of participation and inclusiveness.
 

“This is a major step forward in our ambition to organise unique Olympic Games,” said Paris 2024 President Tony Estanguet. “Right from the beginning, our aim was to offer Games that would have an impact and the element of surprise. This is why we have chosen to present the IOC with four sports that are as creative as spectacular, geared towards youth and completely in line with our vision. We are certain that breaking, skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing will contribute to strengthen our project. They reflect perfectly Paris 2024’s identity. By giving everyone a chance to be part of the Games, to experience the biggest sporting event on the planet from the inside, Paris 2024 is leading the way towards new horizons. The idea of participating in a mass event on the same day and in the same conditions as the marathon of the Games, to be able to compete against the greatest champions thanks to virtual or connected sports, is a new turning point in the history of Olympism.”
 

Additional Sports

Paris 2024 has seized the opportunity presented by the IOC to include additional sports on the programme as a way of enhancing it and strengthening its core concept. In doing so, it is pursuing three key principles which seek to deliver:
 
Sustainable and socially-responsible Games in line with Agenda 2020 and the IOC’s New Norm, through sports that can be enjoyed by a limited number of athletes and do not require permanent facilities.
Games that are in keeping with the times and inspire new audiences and attract young people, through sports that allow for engagement on social media, that are both a means of expression and a way of life, and which can be played anywhere and anytime in urban and other environments. The Games have this constant challenge of having to connect with the younger generation. If we want more young people to take up sport, it is easier to do it with sports that actually speak to them.
Games that reflect the identity of Paris 2024: spectacular, culturally relevant, engaging, accessible, inclusive, Games that call for participation beyond the stadiums and for creativity.
 
Paris 2024 is thus proposing to the IOC that four new sports be added to the programme:

These four sports will see the inclusion of 12 new events, with 248 athletes taking part in them (124 women and 124 men, respecting the principle of gender equality). These athletes will form part of the total of 10,500 set out in the Olympic Charter.
 

Opening Up the Games Experience to Everyone

 
In terms of innovation and engagement, Paris 2024 is adopting a truly ambitious approach by offering everyone a chance to enjoy the Games experience in person.
 

Mass Participation Events: a revolution in the history of the Games

 
Paris 2024 will, for the very first time, invite the general public to take part in the Games by participating in mass events, organized in the same conditions as those encountered by the Olympic athletes. Several formats will be offered to give everyone, regardless of their sporting ability, the chance to savour the Olympic Games experience. Along with the IOC and the International Federations, Paris 2024 is currently looking into the possibility of extending the concept of mass events to other sports at the Games.
 

Virtual an Connected Events: a chance to take on the best athletes

 
Paris 2024’s goal is to propose unique Games, harnessing innovation and creativity to drive its ambition. In 2024, we will deliver the Olympic experience to the wider world, using virtual and connected sports to enable people around the globe to take on the best international athletes. Paris 2024 is exploring new areas of engagement by inviting fans all over the world to share in the Olympic experience.
 
Paris 2024 is excited to explore the proposal made by World Sailing, the world governing body for the sport of sailing, to include offshore racing as an engagement opportunity alongside the Games. Should the IOC give its approval, this new activity will benefit from unique exposure to spectators on the ground, global TV audiences, and sailing fans. Thanks to eSailing, and for the first time in the history of the Games, fans will be invited to pit themselves virtually against the best, in real time and on the very same course as Olympic athletes.
Paris 2024 is also looking to explore new avenues with connected sports. Cycling and rowing already offer connected events where enthusiasts can ride and row in real time with competing athletes. Competitive and innovative in nature, these new experiences reflect Paris 2024’s desire to engage with as many stakeholders as possible around the Games.