🤺 Paris 2024: What went...right? 🥇

Well, almost everything.

Like a lot of people who live in the Paris region, I have been deeply cynical about the Paris 2024 Games over the past few years. There have been endless stories about the potential for protests, security threats, inconveniences for locals, disappointing tourism trends, and the general expectation that Paris was likely going to do a massive belly flop on the international stage.

The British press were clearly sharpening the long knives, preparing to roast the French while crowing about the success of the London 2012 Games. Throw in a last-minute Snap election that divided the country, a nation genetically predisposed to complaining, the mounting pressure — and you had all the ingredients for two weeks of chaos.

Drooling at the looming fiasco, The Telegraph of the UK promised:

In what has to rank as one of the nation’s biggest plot twists, the Paris Games 2024 was a rousing success by almost any quantitative or qualitative measure. The world saw two weeks of uncharacteristically joyful French people basking in the moment with furious pride. The French media scrambled to adjust, throwing out calls for people who fled Paris for the games and now regretted their decision to leave after seeing the iconic scenes on their TVs.

Speaking on Monday, Paris 2024 Games Director Tony Estanguet said, “I don't think it could have gone much better. I think these Games were even better (than he imagined). And yet, I remember that I was often treated as a bit of an idealist. We were crazy with this project, audacious. The first opening ceremony outside a stadium, the marathon open to the general public, breathtaking competition venues but maddeningly complex to operate.”

That joyful atmosphere reached a larger audience than expected, as NBC Universal reported record viewership boosted by a more elaborate streaming strategy. The Paris games will drive the largest ad revenue for any TV event in history, NBC told the LA Times. Since peaking with the 2012 London Games, Olympic viewership has been in steady decline. So much so that many critics were asking: Can Paris save the Olympics?

The answer seems to be resounding: Yes!

In their wildest fantasies, Paris organizers could not have dreamed of such gushing headlines in the international press:

• Paris lights the way to Los Angeles: France closes a Games marked by sporting, organizational, and social success, a reconciliation with the Olympic spirit after the Tokyo pandemic which raises the bar for the 2028 event. (El Pais)

• Paris, Uncharacteristically Giddy, Bids Au Revoir to the Olympics: A joyous Games, a cleaned-up Seine, and improvements to the region brought cheer to Parisians as they handed off the Summer Olympics to Los Angeles. (NY Times)

• Can’t borrow the Eiffel Tower, but L.A. 2028 Olympics can learn from Paris 2024 (Washington Post)

• Best Olympics of all time? Paris and London share the gold medal: The stereotype of the grumpy Frenchman went missing for 17 days as the city made the Games look more beautiful than ever. But it was the 10,000-plus athletes who put on a show to rival London 2012. (The Times of the UK)

• Paris Olympic fortnight sets a high standard for future Games: The Paris 2024 Olympic Games, which ended on Sunday night in a lavish closing ceremony, avoided the predictions of doom. 16 medal-winning summer days and nights for French athletes brought a new vision of success, both at home and abroad. (Radio France)

• Le feel-good games | Paris’s stunning vision for the Olympics wins a gold medal: The Paris games are drawing to a close on a note of ferveur olympique in the French capital. Once skeptical, the French have been won over, both by the performance of their athletes, who won more medals than at any previous Olympics, and the sheer beauty of the capital’s backdrops.” (The Economist)

“Something has come to light, and I think we've reinvigorated the Olympic Games with this edition,” President Emmanuel Macron said after the Games. “We've reinvented the Summer Games, we've recreated an enthusiasm that had been waning somewhat in recent years…I want to say how proud I am of the French men and women. There is one loser: the spirit of defeat. All those who have been telling us for seven years that it was crazy to host the Olympics. The opening ceremony on the River Seine was a security blunder, we'd never have enough medals, it would be a financial disaster, and we'd never be able to swim in the Seine...And in the end, we succeeded. We did it!”

Sporting Results

The French finished 5th overall in medals, largely in line with expectations, though fewer Gold Medals than many had hoped. Still, the Games made swimmer Léon Marchand a global celebrity thanks to his 4 gold medals. And the French Women’s Basketball Team almost pulled off a stunning upset of the US Women’s Team.

That Mascot

Two years ago, the official Paris Games 2024 mascot was widely mocked for resembling a certain part of the female genitalia. However, the Phryge got the last laugh, proving popular with fans and viewers around the world.

According to Challengers newspaper, there were 1.5 million units of the Phryge items manufactured for the games, including stuffed toys, pajamas, hats, pens, and so on. The final sales numbers have not been released, but vendors reported strong purchasing trends, with 120,000 Phryges sold in just five days at Galeries Lafayette during the Games.

Security

With attacks on train lines just before the Games, the nation feared that predictions of chaos might be coming true. But this proved to be the only major event during the 15 days of the Games. Otherwise, a massive police presence, the controversial AI-powered video surveillance, and a strong cyber defense kept things moving smoothly. Overall, the city reported a drop in crime compared to typical periods in past years.

Transportation

“Even though everyone predicted an immense failure, we met the challenge,” said Jean Castex, head of the regional public transportation agency RATP. He has reason to boast. All the regional transportation services rallied to the cause and delivered reliable transportation through the Games.

The preparations for the Games included a recent extension of the Metro 14 line to reach the Stade de France which operated smoothly. More employees were on duty and and more trains ran more frequently, all without major problems, according to France Info. Compared to 2023, an additional 500,000 people used public transportation every day during the Games — 20% more than usual.

La Seine

Photo via Olympics.com

One of the most hyped storylines coming into the Games was the billion-euro effort to clean up the Seine River so that some events could be held in the famed waters. This was a nail-biter right until the end as heavy rains kept pollution levels too high until just a couple of weeks before the Games.

In the end, the waters cooperated, and the Games held the triathlon and marathon swimming courses in the Seine, creating yet another iconic image of athletes and this natural Parisian monument. Cameras captured swimmers passing the Alexander III Bridge, the Grand Palais, and the Invalides.

One cautionary note: There are still some disputed reports that a handful of athletes from Germany and Portugal became sick after swimming in the events. No official determination has been made about whether they were victims of a virus or were made ill by the water.

Tourism

The projections were bleak in the weeks leading up to the games as hotels and airlines reported large numbers of vacancies and a drop in passengers. In the end, the overall tourism numbers were strong.

According to the Paris Tourism Office, Paris hotels had an average occupancy rate of 84% during the two weeks of competition up from 74% during the same two weeks in 2023. While there was indeed a lack of international visitors, Paris recorded 11.2 tourists between July 23 and August 11 — 85% of them French.

As a result, the accommodation sector generated revenues of €652 million across France during that period — a strong showing after a weak June and early July due to weather that dampened travel.

Though it wasn’t the Best of Times for everyone. “Olympic fever filled the stadiums, but emptied museums,” according to Le Monde. The Louvre experienced a 22% drop in the number of visitors between July 27 and August 11, compared to the same dates in 2023, the Pompidou Centre was down 29%, the Musée d'Orsay fell 29%, the Musée d'Orangerie dropped 31%, and the Palace of Versailles declined 25%.

Opening And Closing Ceremonies

Overall positive, though of course some silly controversies and differing opinions on their entertainment value. Still, a new standard was set with the parade of boats on the Seine River (despite the rain) for the Opening Ceremony and the mix of performances of the Closing Ceremony. Indeed, the artists chosen by the LA Games seemed greatly diminished despite being far more famous.

Artistic Director Thomas Jolly only lamented the length of the Closing Ceremony (due to the athletes’ parade and the long-winded Olympic speech), according to Le Parisien:

“I'm delighted because we're all experiencing something quite unique. We could have hoped for it, but now we're seeing it. I used to talk about 'shared humanity', but yesterday (Sunday), the image that sticks in my head is the incessant flow of athletes,” Jolly said. “From a purely artistic point of view, it was sorely lacking in rhythm…but that's also the game of a ceremony…It's like the Césars, Oscars, or the Molières ceremony. It's too long but yes, that's the principle.”

The Final Word…

Here’s what a few of my favorite French Substack-ers had to say about the Games:

Les Olympics

“The stifling crowds never appeared in Paris. Many blame the hotels raising prices 300%, and sky-high airfares. Plus there was the usual exodus from Paris by locals for their summer vacations, which happens every August, removing thousands of people from the city, many smug that they were escaping just in time before the nightmare began.

Too bad for them. For us who stayed, Paris turned into one big party and by all measures the 2024 Paris Olympics was a hit.”

The Paris Olympics Legacy? Joy.

“It’s fitting that the end of the Olympic Games (the first part, anyway— the Paralympics begins August 28!) coincides with the end of summer, creeping ever closer, and all the blues that go with it. But France, and Parisians especially, have reason to remain joyous and optimistic a bit longer— the Games were a smashing success and fostered an atmosphere of euphoria palpable even to those who were watching from afar.”

A recap of the Paris Olympics

“I’ve never seen Paris more alive, yet empty. The crowds and chaos of the transport system did not happen. There were some crowds at some of the events, but no more than you’d expect at a sporting venue.”

Chris O’Brien

Castelnau-d’Aude