With the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games only taking place the year before last, it seems too soon to be talking about Paris 2024, doesn’t it? But with the last Olympics delayed a year due to a certain C word, it is, in fact, time to get revved up to see the world’s best athletes take the main stage once again – and this year there’s a particularly exciting reason to tune in.
According to reports, Paris 2024 will be the first Olympics in history to achieve numerical gender parity on the field of play, with the same number of female and male athletes participating in the largest sporting event in the world.
A full circle moment (women competed for the first time at the 1900 Olympic Games in Paris), the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had previously stated their intention to do this on March 8 2023, which marked International Women’s Day.
The International Olympic Committee has announced its commitments towards strengthening and accelerating gender equality at the Olympic Games and across the Olympic Movement by 2024.#GenerationEquality | #ActForEqual | #StrongerTogether | @GenEgaliteFRhttps://t.co/wfKjDzFu7r
— IOC MEDIA (@iocmedia) July 6, 2021
“The Olympic Games are a rare occasion when female athletes can make the headlines as much as their male counterparts. We know that there are prime global broadcasting times at each edition of the Olympic Games. We have adjusted the schedule accordingly to ensure that a gender-balanced number of medal events and total competition hours take place during those time slots”, said Nawal El Moutawakel, a former Olympic Moroccan hurdler.
After choosing a woman’s face for its emblem, Paris 2024 has developed a schedule for the Games that ensures balance between genders for “prime time” sessions in order to promote women’s sport to the public, particularly young girls.
“Because equality also involves visibility, the renaming of these sports facilities with women’s names is a key challenge,” said Tony Estanguet, President of Paris 2024. “We thank the local authorities working with us who, through these symbolic actions – which are not only strong but also concrete – contribute to making sport more inclusive and equal.”
Here’s everything we know about the Paris 2024 Olympic Games so far.
When are the Paris Olympics?
The Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games will take place from 26 July to 11 August 2024. It will see 19 days of competition (handball, football and rugby take place from July 24th), 329 events, 206 National Olympic Committees ,28 sports + (including 4 additional sports) and 10 500 athletes.
What are the four new sports for the 2024 Olympic Games?
Paris 2024 has taken the opportunity provided by the IOC in the Olympic Agenda 2020 to propose additional sports to enhance its programme and overall concept. These sports include breaking, sport climbing, skateboarding and surfing.
Where will the events be held?
Paris’ iconic landmarks are being transformed into sporting arenas to offer spectators something a little different come 2024. For example, Paris’s River Seine is going through a 500,000-euro overhaul for the 2024 Games where it will be used for triathlon, para-triathlon and open swimming events. It will also function as the backdrop of the official opening ceremony.
Elsewhere, a 12,000-seat stadium will be constructed in front of the Eiffel Tower to host beach volleyball during the Olympics and the men’s blind football during the Paralympics. Plus, the Palace of Versailles will be temporarily fitted out to stage several equestrian and modern pentathlon events.
How much are tickets?
Tickets for the opening ceremony, for example, will start at €90 ($148) for the Olympic Games and start at €150 ($247) for the Paralympic Games. Tickets for swimming, which were previously sold out, range from as low as €24 ($39) for a morning session during the 50m freestyle heats to as much as €980 ($1615) for the 50m freestyle final. That of course is in addition to your plane ticket and hotel if you wish to be up close to the action.
How can we watch the Paris Olympics from Australia?
You can tune into dedicated Olympics channels on Channel 9 and 9Gem, 24 hours a day. There will also be 40 individual channels live and on-demand ensuring no event featuring an Australian need be missed.
Who are some of the female athletes that will make an appearance?
From Ariarne Titmus, to Nicola Olyslagers, Eleanor Patterson, Jess Fox, Laetisha Scanlan, Madison Levi, and a whole lot more, the 2024 roster is an exciting one.
