On Friday, July 26, the 33rd Summer Olympic Games will kick off in Paris. The event will gather the world’s top athletes. Here’s all the essential information about the 2024 Olympics.
Record-Breaking Attendance
With nearly 9 million visitors expected, the 2024 Olympics in Paris has already set a record for ticket sales.
Location and Dates
In 2017, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) selected Paris as the host city for the 2024 Olympics. Paris faced little competition, as Hamburg, Rome, and Budapest withdrew their bids early in the selection process.
Los Angeles was the only other major contender, but the IOC decided to award the 2028 Games to the American city, allowing Paris to host the 2024 Games. The events will take place from July 26 to August 11 in Paris and its suburbs.
This will be the third time Paris hosts the Summer Olympics, having previously done so in 1900 and 1924. Additionally, France has hosted the Winter Olympics three times: in Chamonix (1924), Grenoble (1968), and Albertville (1992).
Approximately 9 billion euros have been allocated for organizing the Games. Although this is not a record amount, it is still significant, especially considering the Tokyo 2020 Olympics cost over 15 billion euros due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sports at the 2024 Games
The Paris Olympics will feature 329 events across 32 sports, including:
- Team Sports: Football, basketball, 3×3 basketball, volleyball, beach volleyball, handball, rugby sevens, hockey
- Racquet Sports: Tennis, table tennis, badminton
- Golf
- Aquatics: Swimming, diving, synchronized swimming, water polo
- Rowing: Rowing, canoeing
- Sailing and Surfing
- Cycling: BMX, BMX freestyle, mountain biking, track cycling, road cycling
- Shooting: Rifle, shotgun, archery
- Equestrian: Dressage, show jumping, eventing
- Athletics: Track and field, marathon, racewalking
- Weightlifting
- Gymnastics: Artistic gymnastics, rhythmic gymnastics, trampoline
- Combat Sports: Boxing, judo, wrestling (freestyle and Greco-Roman), taekwondo
- Modern Pentathlon
- Fencing
- Triathlon
- Skateboarding
- Sport Climbing
- Breakdancing
Participating Countries and Athletes
Nearly 11,000 athletes from 206 countries will compete. The IOC has not invited Russia and Belarus due to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. However, athletes from these countries can participate as neutrals if they pass a vetting process to prove they do not support the war and have no ties to military structures.
Expected neutral athletes: 31
Countries with the most athletes: USA (592), France (573), Australia, Germany, Italy (each with over 400 athletes).
