The Evolution of Olympics to a 'Sporty, elegant and So French' Paris Edition

Paris Olympics, 

Saturday, 27 July, 2024 

McCreadie Andias 

Olympics through the History Books 

The modern Olympic Games are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a variety of competitions.

They are considered the world's foremost sports competition with more than 200 teams, representing sovereign states and territories, participating.

The Games are held every four years. Since 1994, they have alternated between the Summer and Winter Olympics every two years during the four-year Olympiad.

Their creation was inspired by the ancient Olympic Games, held in Olympia, Greece.

The IOC is the governing body of the Olympic Movement, which encompasses all entities and individuals involved in the Olympic Games whilst The Olympic Charter defines their structure and authority.

The evolution of the Olympic Movement resulted in numerous changes to the Olympic Games and adjustments including the creation of the Winter Olympic Games for snow and ice sports, the Paralympic Games for athletes with disabilities, the Youth Olympic Games for athletes aged 14 to 18, the five Continental Games (Pan American, African, Asian, European, and Pacific), and the World Games for sports that are not contested in the Olympic Games.  

The Olympic Movement consists of international sports federations (IFs), National Olympic Committees (NOCs), and organizing committees for each specific Olympic Games.

As the decision-making body, the IOC is responsible for choosing the host city for each Games, and organizes and funds the Games according to the Olympic Charter. The IOC also determines the Olympic programme, consisting of the sports to be contested at the Games. 

The Paris Olympics chapter presents an adventurous landmark to the colorful history of the Olympics. 

On Friday 26,2024. The City of Light, lit the torch for the 2024 Paris Olympics in a revolutionized fashion. 

The Instruments and Symbols 

There are several Olympic rituals and symbols, such as the Olympic flag, torch, and opening and closing ceremonies. 

The Olympic Movement uses symbols to represent the ideals embodied in the Olympic Charter. The Olympic symbol, better known as the Olympic rings, consists of five intertwined rings and represents the unity of the five inhabited continents (Africa, The Americas (is considered one continent), Asia, Europe, and Oceania). 

The coloured version of the rings—blue, yellow, black, green, and red—over a white field forms the Olympic flag. 

These colors were chosen because every nation had at least one of them on its national flag.

The Olympic motto, Citius, Altius, Fortius, a Latin expression means "Faster, Higher, Stronger". 

The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well.

Months before each Games, the Olympic Flame is lit at the Temple of Hera in Olympia in a ceremony that reflects ancient Greek rituals.

A female performer, acting as a priestess joined by ten female performers as Vestal Virgins, ignites a torch by placing it inside a parabolic mirror which focuses the sun's rays. 

She then lights the torch of the first relay bearer who also is a Greek athlete, thus initiating the Olympic torch relay that will carry the flame to the host city's Olympic stadium, where it plays an important role in the opening ceremony

Though the flame has been an Olympic symbol since 1928, the torch relay was only introduced at the 1936 Summer Games to promote the Third Reich.

The Olympic mascot, an animal, a human or an anthropomorphic figure representing the cultural heritage of the host country, has played an important part of the Games' identity promotion. 

The mascot for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games is an anthropomorphic Phrygian cap based on the one Marianne wore at the time of the French Revolution.

Ceremonial Protocol 

The artistic presentations have grown in scale and complexity as successive hosts attempt to provide a ceremony that outlasts its predecessor's in terms of memorability. 

The opening ceremony of the Beijing Games reportedly cost $100 million, with much of the cost incurred in the artistic segment.

After the artistic portion of the ceremony, the athletes parade into the stadium grouped by nation. Greece is traditionally the first nation to enter and leads the parade in order to honor the origins of the Olympics. 

Nations then enter the stadium alphabetically according to the host country's chosen language, with the host country's athletes being the last to enter.

Speeches are given by the President of the Organizing Committee, the IOC president, and the head of state/representative of the host country, formally opening the Games. 

Finally, the Olympic torch is brought into the stadium and passed on until it reaches the final torch carrier, often a successful Olympic athlete from the host nation, who lights the Olympic flame in the stadium's cauldron.

The Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony 

Emerging from behind a row of pink feathered fans and dressed fit for the event, Lady Gaga set the tone for the evening to come.

“Bonsoir! Bienvenue à Paris," the singer-songwriter shouted after her performance of the iconic French revue song, “Mon truc en plume”, to start off an unforgettable celebration. And the athletes were ready to heed the call.

For the first time in its history, the summer Olympics opening ceremony was held outside an open stadium, this time held in the heart of the city along its main artery: the Seine river.

A bold, original and unique fashion taking on a new guise, the parade of athletes was held on the Seine with boats for each national delegation. 

The parade departed from the Austerlitz bridge beside the Jardin des Plantes and made its way around the two islands at the center of the city (the Île Saint Louis and the Île de la Cité) before passing world-renown landmarks, such as the Esplanade des Invalides, the Place de la Concorde, the Notre-Dame and the Grand Palais, before arriving at the Trocadero opposite the Eiffel Tower.

These boats were equipped with cameras to allow television and online viewers to see the athletes up close. Winding their way 6 kilometers from east to west, the 10,500 athletes crossed in 85 boats along the river through central Paris, history came alive around them.

They had a glimpses of some of the official Games venues, including Parc Urbain La Concorde, the Esplanade des Invalides, the Grand Palais, and lastly the Iéna bridge where the parade stopped before the ceremony took place at the Trocadéro.

A distinct French feel infused the whole ceremony. Some moments were a nod to touristy trinkets such as berets and croissants, while others saluted high-culture opera and ballet dancers performing pirouettes on rooftops while Parisians stepped out onto their balconies to cheer on. 

Mixed in among these landmarks were the venues that will host the athletes for competition over the next 16 days and, for some, become the stage of their biggest triumphs.

From solemn to jubilant, the Opening Ceremony next switched focus to a bold fashion show where a table top at a costume banquet served as the runway.

The party was still on, with more athlete boats coming and spectators as enthusiastic as ever despite the falling rain.

The jubilant spectators along the Seine were a stark contrast to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in which Covid restrictions prevented people from attending the Opening Ceremony. 

But if Tokyo 2020 were a testament to the resilience of the human spirit, Paris 2024 showed the party that awaits as the reward at the end of the long road.

A ceremony open to as many people as possible, about 320,000 spectators were able to enjoy the show live from the Seine quays – not counting those looking out of their living room windows that faced the Seine – in addition to the hundreds of millions watching around the world.

Eighty giant screens and strategically placed speakers allowed everyone to enjoy the magical atmosphere of this show reverberating throughout the French capital making it the largest in Games history. 

The historic significance of the moment was further amplified as images chronicling the past 100 years of sport were shown on screens, tracking the progress humanity has made in the century since the last time Paris hosted the Olympic Games, in 1924.

As the images flashed on the screens across the city, a horsewoman in a silver suit carried the flag of the International Olympic Committee as if floating along the Seine atop a metal horse.A representation of Olympic spirit and a call for peace and solidarity. 

Her journey finished at the Trocadero where, now riding a live horse, the non-commissioned officer presented the Olympic Flag to start the protocol section of the Opening Ceremony. A group of Games volunteers carried the national flags in after her.

Lighting the Olympic Cauldron

As the athletes made their way to Trocadero, the Olympic flame was also making progress to its ultimate destination - Jardin des Tuileries.

It began the night’s journey with a trip to the French metro in the hands of French football legend Zinedine Zidane. Handed over to a masked torchbearer, it then flitted across Parisian rooftops and snaked through the empty halls of the Louvre Museum, until making its way back to the World Cup winner who carried the flame into the Trocadero.

After clapping hands with some of the lucky fans in the stands, Zidane passed the flame to Spanish tennis ace Rafael Nadal who has marked his own spot in French history with a 14-time winning record at Roland Garros.

A boat packed with international sports superstars - Nadal, Serena Williams, Carl Lewis, and Nadia Comaneci - who have 20 Olympic gold medals between them, then carried the flame to the Louvre from where it continued its trip to the Jardin des Tuileries in the company of 18 Olympians and Paralympians.

French sporting heroes Teddy Riner and Marie-José Pérec picked up the Olympic flame for the walk up to the cauldron - a ring of flames attached to a hot air balloon, a nod to the first hydrogen-powered balloon flight from the same location in 1783.

A 'Celin Moment' 

Once the cauldron was lit, the balloon rose into the sky as the first notes of Edith Piaf's "L'hymne à l'amour" rang out and global singing star Celine Dion. 

The music icon emerged 28 years later after the 1996 Atlanta Olympics performance,she sprunged on the Eiffel Tower balcony to salute Paris and the Olympic Games in her first live performance since announcing her diagnosis with illness. 

A roar of cheers rose from the stands along the Seine, in the Trocadero and around the French capital as Dion, wowed in a white glittering dress, stretched out her arms from the city's most famous landmark, the Olympic flame soaring ever higher into the night sky.

It was a rain party on the Seine in Paris for an unforgettable Opening Ceremony in a city with so much to tell about people, the culture and architecture. Paris won our hearts. 

Thanks to the concerted efforts of Paris 2024, the City of Paris, the French government, the IOC and the CNOSF, the Opening Ceremony is being remade and perhaps the most memorable moments in Olympic history.

The Teams and Programmes

The Olympic Games programme consists of 35 sports, 30 disciplines and 408 events. 

For example, wrestling is a Summer Olympic sport, comprising two disciplines: Greco-Roman and Freestyle. It is further broken down into fourteen events for men and four events for women, each representing a different weight class.

The Summer Olympics programme includes 26 sports, while the Winter Olympics programme features 15 sports. 

Athletics, swimming, fencing, and artistic gymnastics are the only summer sports that have never been absent from the Olympic programme.

Cross-country skiing, figure skating, ice hockey, Nordic combined, ski jumping, and speed skating have been featured at every Winter Olympics programme since its inception in 1924. 

Current Olympic sports, like badminton, basketball, and volleyball, first appeared on the programme as demonstration sports, and were later promoted to full Olympic sports.

This year, athletes will compete across 32 sports in 329 events before the Paris Olympic Games end on August 11.

Each participating nation or territory sends athletes through their respective National Olympic Committee.

According to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) website, the purpose of a National Olympic Committee is “to ensure the representation of their respective countries at the Olympic Games by sending competitors and officials as well as to promote the fundamental principles and values of Olympism in their countries, in particular in the fields of sport and education.”

Each National Olympic Committee is legally and politically autonomous from the country it represents, and must be recognized by the IOC.

There are currently 206 National Olympic Committees listed on the Olympics website.

As of July 27, 2024, the Paris Olympics website states that athletes from 203 National Olympic Committees will compete in the Paris Olympics, as well as athletes from the IOC Refugee Team, which was created for displaced and refugee athletes in 2015.

The official list of athletes participating in the Paris Olympics is 10,500 athletes listed on the Olympics website as of Friday afternoon.

According to the list, 631 athletes will represent the United States at the 2024 Olympics, the most of any country.

Around 11,000 athletes participated in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, including 613 athletes from Team USA, according to the Olympics website.

As of the Olympics Opening Ceremony on July 26, the NOCs with the most athletic participation include the following:

United States: 631 athletes

France: 588 athletes

Australia: 471 athletes

As for the least-represented NOCs, Belize, Liechtenstein, Nauru and Somalia are sending just one athlete to compete in the games.

The NBC will provide prime time coverage for 17 Consecutive nights during the Paris Olympics which will include 7,000+: Total programming hours across NBCU platforms. 

Revenues 

The Olympic Games have been commercialized to various degrees since the inaugural Summer Olympics in Athens, when a number of companies paid for advertising,Coca-Cola first sponsored the Summer Olympics in 1928, and has remained an Olympic sponsor ever since.

The Paris 2024 Olympics is estimated to significantly boost France’s economy. 

The investments made in France’s construction sector prior to the event have revived the industry, while the high number of visitors led to an increase in demand and activity in the service sectors. 

Paris 2024 becomes the most ticket-selling Olympic game in history having sold 9.3 million out of 10 million tickets so far. 

Ticket prices range from around $97 to over $2,900, and the most expensive ticket holders have also bought a package for included catering at $4,200.

Tourists in the French capital are estimated to spend $2.8 billion during the event, according to the Paris Tourism Office.

The tourist spending is expected to give a boost to the French economy while inflation and the cost of living are on the rise.

The official budget of the Paris 2024 Olympics is estimated at $9.5 billion, and the hosting country’s expenditures for the duration of the event is estimated to reach $10.8 billion.

The games are expected to contribute around $7.2 billion to $12 billion to the Paris Region. 

The event will create 181,000 jobs and act as a lever to boost economic activity and employment, according to the Paris 2024 Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

France is expected to generate $5.7 billion in tax and social security revenues from the event.

Defending champions and emerging favorites 

Football 

Defending champions Brazil are by far the most successful men's soccer team at the Olympics with 7 medals including 2 gold medals,3 Silver and 2 Bronze medals. However they are not participating in the Paris Edition which Makes European representatives Spain the biggest favorites alongside Argentina. 

The United States women Football team is the most successful side in the women's tournament with 4 gold medals and 1 silver while they will be facing stiff competition from top Favorites and world cup winners Spain and Defending champions Canada. 

Basketball 

The United States has won the most Olympic medals for basketball in both men's and women's games. The men's team has won 16 gold medals, 1 silver medal and 2 bronze medals. 

The women's team has won 9 gold medals, 1 silver medal and 1 bronze medal. 

Both the United States men and women's teams are currently the defending champions and clear favorites of the basketball tournaments. 

The men's team have won it a record four consecutive times while the women's basketball team have won it a record 7 consecutive times only missing the golden medal on three occasions to the Soviet Union twice and Spain once. 

Tennis 

The Tennis tournaments will produce more competition owing to the new wild faces that will participate 

Tokyo's edition saw Germany's Alexander Zverev defeat Karen Khachanov of the Russian Olympic Committee in the final, 6–3, 6–1, to win the gold medal in Men's Singles tennis at the 2020 Summer Olympics. It was both countries' first medals at the event since 2000, and Germany's first victory. Zverev will face more competition from Rolland Garros winner Carlos Alcaraz while Jannik Sinner withdrew over injury. 

Croatia's Nikola Mektic and Wesley Koolhof lifted the doubles trophy in Tokyo with a 6-4, 3-6, 10-6 triumph against Marin Cilic and Ivan Dodig. However, Spain's Alcaraz - Nadal are seen as favorites for the Paris edition. 

In the women's tennis, Svitolina entered the Paris Olympics as the only medalist from the women's singles tournament in Tokyo to return to this year's Games. She won the bronze behind Belinda Bencic's gold and Markéta Vondroušová's silver. The women's singles will be more fierce due to the likes of America' s Coco Gauff and Polish Iga Swiatek. 

Czech pair Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova swept to the women's doubles gold medal at the Tokyo edition. The Paris Olympics however Presents American Coco Gauff and Emma Navarro as heavy favorites. 

Track and field events  

A total of 1,810 competitors will be participating in various track and field events. 

100 meters champion, USA’s Sha’Carri Richardson will be making her Olympic debut as a clear favorite after a failed drug test left her on the sidelines three years ago in Tokyo.

USA’s Sydney McLaughlin-Levron who Is the defending champion and world-record holder in the 400 meter hurdles will be looking to defend her title as well. 

Another USA sprinter Noah Lyles is expected to go for the 100-200 double after capturing both titles at world championships last year.

Swedish Mondo Duplantis Will try to defend his pole vault title and become the first man since 1956 to win the event at consecutive Olympics. He has broken the world record eight times over the past four years, each time by 1 centimeter; it now stands at 6.24 meters.

The Defending champions for other field events are Venezuela’s Yulimar Rojas

at the Triple jump, China's Gong Lijiaon at the Shot put, USA’s Valarie Allman at the Discus throw, Poland’s Anita Włodarczyk at the Hammer throw, China's Liu Shiying at the Javelin throw. 

Meanwhile, the men's defending champions for races include Italian Marcell Jacobs at 100m, Canadian Andre De Grasse at 200m, Bahamas’s Steven Gardiner at 400m, Kenya's Emmanuel Korir at 800m, Norway’sJakob Ingebrigtsen at 1500m, Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei at 5000m and Ethiopia’sSelemon Barega at 10000m. 

Defending champion Hansle Parchment of Jamaica will be a man to watch at the 110m hurdles, Norway’s Karsten Warholm will also seek to retain his 400m hurdle medal while Morocco’s Soufiane El Bakkali will face tough competition as he looks to retain his 3000m steeplechase medal. 

Track runs will take place on 2-11 August at Stade de France, with the marathons set for 10-11 August. The marathons will pass through Versailles and, in a break from tradition, the women’s marathon will cap off the action on 11 August.

Gymnastics 

A total of 20 athletes (12 men and eight women) will compete in gymnastics at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

A household name in gymnastics, Simone Biles will be aiming for further glory in France. She won two medals at the Tokyo Olympics, a team silver and a bronze in balance beam, before opting out of multiple events to focus on her mental health. Gold will be her aim this time around for Team USA. 

During the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, American Sunisa Lee had become the fifth consecutive American woman gymnast to win the all-around title, and despite fighting health issues recently, she will remain a strong contender for gold, thanks to her never-say-die attitude.

Japanese Daiki Hashimoto enjoyed success at home when he won gold in the Olympic all-around segment at the Tokyo Olympics, and he will be a strong favorite to not just defend that title, but potentially win more medals.

Fred Richard is just 20 years old but has been making waves in gymnastics. He recently became the first American gymnast in 13 years to clinch an all-around medal at the World Championships when he won the bronze medal in October last year.

The artistic gymnastics competition will take place at the Bercy Arena from 27 July to 5 August, whereas the trampoline events will take place at the same venue on 2 August. The rhythmic gymnastics competition will take place at the Porte de La Chapelle Arena from 8 August to 10 August.

Team Kenya 

Kenyan athletes will be sporting a travel kit that embodies both national pride and cultural heritage as they begin their feat at the Paris 2024 Olympics

The kit incorporates the Kenyan flag's colors (black, white, red, and green) and features elements inspired by traditional Maasai Shukas, reflecting Kenyan cultural heritage.

Their heroic entry through the Seine river was heartwarming as flag-bearers Ferdinand Omanyala and Triza Atukha carried the Kenyan flag high and raised the high spirits of patriotism and love. 

Team Kenya will train and camp at Miramas, Southern France as they prepare for the competitions.

The Kenya Rugby Sevens team will start their 7s campaign against Samoa at 6PM.

In other Saturday events, Alexandra Ndolo will represent Kenya against Ukraine’s Olena Kryvytska at Fencing while Ridhwan. A. Mohamed will represent the country at the men's 400m Freestyle swimming. 

Kenya's Volleyball team Malika strikers will begin their quest for the Gold Medal against Brazil on Monday 29th July. 

In the field and track events where Kenya's prowess lies, Defending champion Eliud Kipchoge will represent Kenya in the men's Marathon alongside Benson Kipruto, ⁠Alex Mutiso and Timothy Kiplagat. 

Olympic winner Hellen Obiri will lead Team Kenya in the women's marathon alongside Defending champion Peres Jepchirchir and Sharon Loked.

Here are more representatives in other event's ;

Women's 10000m ( Beatrice Chebet, Lillian Kasait, Margaret Chelimo, Janeth Chengetich) they four will face tough competition from defending champion Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands. 

Men’s 10000m ( Daniel Mateiko, Nicholas Kimeli, Bernard Kibet, Benson Kiplagat) 

Women's 5000m (Faith Kipyegon, Beatrice Chebet, Margaret Chelimo, Carolina Nyaga) Dutch Sifan Hassan who is also the defending champion is expected to challenge to face off with Kipyegon in a tough encounter. 

Men’s 5000m ( Cornelius Kemboi, Ronald Kwemoi, Jacob Krop, Edwin Kurgat) 

Men’s 3000m Steeplechase (Leonard Kipkemoi Bett, Amos Serem, Abraham Kibiwot, Simon Kiprop Koech) 

Women’s 3000m Steeplechase (Beatrice Chepkoech, Jackline Chepkoech, Faith Cherotich) Peruth Chemutai of Uganda is defending champion. 

Women's 1500m (Faith Kipyegon is defending champion, Nelly Chepchirchir, Susan Lokayo Ejore, Edinah Jebitok) 

Men’s 1500m ( Timothy Cheruiyot, Reynold Kipkorir Cheruiyot, Brian Komen, Asbel Kipsang) 

Women's 800m (Mary Moraa, Lilian Odira, Vivian Chebet Kiprotich, Naomi Korir) 

Men’s 800m (Emmanuel Wanyonyi, Wyclife Kinyamal, Koitatoi Kidali, Alex Kipngetich Ngeno) 

Men's 400m (Zablon Ekwam Ekhal) 

Men's 400m Hurdles(Wiseman Were Mukhobe) 

Women's 4x400m Relay( Mercy Chebet, Veronica Mutua Kamumbe,Maureen Thomas Nyatichi) 

Men’s 4×400m ( Boniface Mweresa Ontuga, Kelvin Tauta Sane, David Kapirante Sanayek) 

Ferdinand Omanyala will be the only Kenyan representative in the men's 100m race. 

Men's 20km Race walk (Samuel Gathimba Kireri) Massimo Stano of Italy will be looking to defend his medal. 

Julius Yego will represent Kenya in the men's Javelin Throw but will face stiff competition from defending champion Liu Shiying of China. 

Medal presentation

A medal ceremony is held after the conclusion of each Olympic event. The winner, and the second- and third-place competitors or teams, stand on top of a three-tiered rostrum to be awarded their respective medals by a member of the IOC.After the medals have been received, the national flags of the three medallists are raised while the national anthem of the gold medallist's country is played.

Closing ceremony

The closing ceremony of the Olympic Games takes place on a Sunday and after all sporting events have concluded. 

Flag-bearers from each participating country enter the stadium, followed by the athletes who enter together, without any national distinction. 

Three national flags are hoisted while the corresponding national anthems are played: the flag of the current host country; the flag of Greece, to honor the birthplace of the Olympic Games; and the flag of the country hosting the next Summer or Winter Olympic Games.

The president of the organizing committee and the IOC president make their closing speeches, the Games are officially closed, and the Olympic flame is extinguished.

As is customary, the last medal presentation of the Games is held as part of the closing ceremony. Typically, the marathon medals are presented at the Summer Olympics, while the cross-country skiing mass start medals are awarded at the Winter Olympics.

The closing ceremony for the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics will be on Sunday, Aug. 11, beginning at 2 p.m. Eastern, in the Stade de France. It will feature a parade of flags, a parade of athletes and victory ceremonies, among other events.