Lessons from the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024

For the first time in history, the opening ceremony of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024 will not be taking place in a stadium. It will be held in the heart of the city, on the Seine River, on 26 July 2024.

The Games’ exclusive official hospitality provider, On Location, is the official partner to over 150 of the most significant brands in sports and entertainment.

During the opening ceremony, corporate guests taking the Bridge 360 Package costing €9,500 per pax (US$10,405) will celebrate in style in premium seats offering unparalleled views and access. This will include views of the parade and the Eiffel Tower from the famous Alma bridge, access to hospitality before, during, and after the ceremony, cocktail dining with a selection of beverages, live music and entertainment, guest appearances and photo ops, grandstand seating (Category A), and open seating on the bridge.

Sustainable Paris 2024

According to PCMA’s Convene, 95% of the venues for the Games will use existing or temporary buildings, the highest figure of any previous Olympic Games. This covers historic sites that have been refurbished such as Yves-du-Manoir Stadium, which was the main venue for the 1924 Games and will host the field hockey competitions for Paris 2024. Temporary facilities include an outdoor arena that will host the Olympic and Paralympic equestrian jumping and dressage competitions on the Etoile Royale esplanade at Château de Versailles.

The Olympic and Paralympic Village comprises neighbourhoods of Seine-Saint-Denis, Ile Saint-Denis, and Saint-Ouen, and will house 14,500 athletes and their staff during the Olympic Games followed by 9,000 athletes and their staff during the subsequent Paralympic Games. The Village’s carbon footprint is also 30% less than that of a modern construction project due to the use of wood and recycled materials, also creating climate-resilient infrastructure.

Legacy for Paris 2024

The geothermal-powered Olympic Village will be a first for the Games, a departure from diesel generators as a primary source of energy. A newly created grid operated by French partner Enedis and EDF will supply Paris 2024 venues with energy produced via off-site wind and solar farms, saving 14,000 tons of carbon emissions. This is also permanent, helping to further the legacy of Paris 2024 by allowing future events to harness renewable energy too.

The design of the new Aquatics Centre, the only permanent sports facility built for Paris 2024, has been built primarily with wood rather than concrete or steel, and will require less cooling and heating, aided by the rooftop solar panels, qualifying as one of France’s largest urban solar farms.

Similar installations will be added to the Olympic Village, the Transport Mall, and on the Seine, where a floating solar power plant with 7,750 sqm will supply energy to the Games and will be repurposed elsewhere later. The backup generators will run on biofuels.

Venues for the Games have been selected for their nearness to public transport even beyond Paris. Lyon, Saint-Etienne, Nice, Bordeaux, Nantes, and Marseille will all serve as Olympic host sites in 2024, with France’s high-speed TGV rail network connecting spectators to those cities and other Olympic sites around France. Within Paris, spectators will have the Paris metro to rely on, which has expanded routes for the Games.

Extra bicycles will be available for spectator use via Vélib, a public bike-sharing program. Toyota will provide a fleet of electric- and hydrogen-fuelled transportation options on hand for athletes, staff, and spectators.