Olympics 2024 in France: Medal Count and Remarkable Moments

The Olympic Games take place from 24 july to 11 august 2024. The parlaympic games follow a few weeks later, from 28 august until 8 september 2024. The venues are located mainly in Paris and its suburbs. Other cities host competitions for sailing (Marseille), football (Bordeaux, Saint Etienne,  Nantes, Lyon, Marseille, Nice), basketball (Lille), shooting (Chateauroux). The surfing events take place in the overseas territory Tahiti.

The event is remarkable on many levels : its advanced security level, a controversial artistic opening ceremony with drag queens, great sportive encounters and special moments of various nature. Check the chronicle below by Leopold Stoeger.  

Paris 2024 applies very strict security rules   

Big international events come with special security rules. People still remember the terrorist attack during the Olympic Games 1972 in Munich :

On the 5th september 1972 a palestine commando assaulted the israeli team, killed two athletes and took nine hostages. During the liberation attempt by the german police at the military airport Fürstenfeldbruck all nine hostages, five of the eight terrorists, and a policeman, were killed.

France suffered massive terror attacks in the last decade (2015 : Charlie Hebdo and the Bataclan, 2016 : the Truck attack in Nice). On the international level there are currently various conflicts, in particular Israels operations in Gaza following the October 2023 attack, and the Ukraine/ Russia war.

The security measures in Paris for the 2024 Olympic Games are impressive :

For the opening ceremony there will be 45 000 policemen and 600 special forces members in the Paris region. For the regular Olympic period, the police force will be 35 000 men. 2000 policemen from 35 foreign countries join the french police for their tasks  too. 

The Olympic Village is not situated in the city of Paris itself, but in 3 close suburbs in the Paris Metropole Region : Saint-Denis (where is as well the « Stade de France »), Saint-Ouen and L’Ile Saint Denis.

The areas that host the Olympic Village, competitions and the opening ceremony, were declared as a « red zone « with an advanced security level. This zone concerns basically all major tourist spots such as the banks of the Seine River, the Eiffel Tower, the Concorde Place etc.

In addition, 44 000 fencces were installed in the streets of Paris to securize the opening ceremony.

Public transport got limited and people who live or work in « red zones » need a special QR Code to enter these areas.

For citizens of Paris, these olympic weeks are a big challenge. The price of a single subway ticket does almost double during this period (the ticket fee rises from 2,15 EUR to 4 EUR). The thousands of fences are impairing old people and parents with baby buggies. Shop and restaurant owners had less clients.

The public administrations installed several websites that inform on the various public transport restrictions and on the obtention rules for the « Olympic Games QR Code ». To get this QR Code, parisians had to download various documents (ID Card, a residence proof etc) on the respective website, and then be patient for the delivery (which could require several days).

A special question concerned one of Paris’ historic cultural heritage sites : « Les Bouquinistes de la Seine » –  220 antiquarian book sellers with their traditional green boxes along the Seine. Initially the mayor of Paris wanted to remove them for the Olympic period, but this plan was abandoned, as 130 bouquinistes had informed about their intention to make a legal complaint at the administrative court.

The Eiffel Tower sector is usually full of illegal souvenir vendors. Due to the increased security controls and police presence, these irregular  commercial activities have totally stopped. However, many believe that the Eiffel Tower will become a clandestine commerce hotspot again, once the Olympic Games will be over.

Water purification of the Seine River for the Paris Olympics 

France’s Prime Minister Gabriel Attal jubilated on 31st july 2024 on social media :

« The triathlon athletes could swim in the Seine this morning. Thanks to a close collaboration between the Government and the local administrations the Seine River is swimmable from now on ! ». (Gabriel Attal, french Prime Minister)

The water purification project of the Seine in the Paris metropolitan region started in 2015, with a total budget of 1,4 billion EUR.

One of its most impressive installations is the « Austerlitz Bassin » in Paris’ 13th district, which can hold 50 000 cube metres of water. Anne Hidalgo, mayor of Paris, had even taken a bath in the Seine on 7 july 2024, to prove that the water is sufficiently clean for the Olympians.

Despite the huge technical efforts, the « swimmability » of the Seine was finally balancing on a knife’s edge during the competitions. The concrete daily hygienic water quality is the critical factor. In case of too much rain, the water purification plants cannot lower the bacterial charge to an acceptable level. For this reason, several olympic training sessions had to be cancelled. Also the concrete flow rate of the river is a factor to be taken into account.

Finally, the triathlon athletes swam in the Seine on july 31st. But, the feedback given by the belgian Triathlon athlete Jolien Vermeylen is a little less enthusiastic than the social media post of the french Prime Minister :

« When swimming unter the bridge, I’ve seen and smelled things about which you should not think too much. The Seine is dirty since hundred years. Thus, they can’t say that the security of the athletes is a priority. That’s nonsense. I swallowed a lot of water, so we will see tomorrow if I’m ill or not. Obviously, it doesn’t taste like Coca-Cola or Sprite. » (Jolien Vermeylen, Triathlon athlete)

Another belgian triathlete, Claire Michel, got hospitalised because of an infection with E-Coli bacteria after her bath in the Seine.

About 200 nations participate : Are there Russians too ?  

The 10 500 athletes belong to 203 national olympic committees from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. There is as well a « Refugee Olympic Team » with 37 participants. Its flagbearers are the boxer Cindy Ngamba (born in Cameroon, currently living in the UK) and the Taekwondo athlete Yahya Al Ghotany (born in Syria, currently living in Jordan).

Russia and Belarus have a very particular status. Because of the war in Ukraine, no state representatives of these countries were invited to Paris. Their athletes are not allowed to compete under their national flags, but they can do it as « neutral athletes ». The rules of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) exclude those athletes that support actively the war and that have a contract with the army or national security agencies. The russian minister for sports commented the IOC decisions as « discriminatory ».

26 July: A Controversial Opening Ceremony with Gaudy Drag Queens

The french president Emmanuel Macron opened the olympic games formally at the Trocadéro Place (in front of the Eiffel Tower), together with Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee, and in the presence of 85 chiefs of government and state.

The Seine River was the second scene for the spectacular opening ceremony. Numerous boats brought the athletes on a 6 kilometre long route from the Austerlitz Bridge to the Eiffel Tower. The show featured the singers Lady Gaga, Céline Dion and Aya Nakamura. The Olympic Flag was transported by a horsewoman of the french police, on a horse-boat on the Seine, and on a real horse for the final metres.

Click here to see the diashow of France24 for these scenes .

One of the most impressive moments was the artistic staging of a blue painted actor representing the greek god Dionysus in front of about a dozen drag queens, transvestites and transsexuals. The drag queens were seated around a table, with a corpulent woman in the center, who has a kind of sun symbol behind her head.

It’s a strident operetta-like picture full of cheerfulness and lust for life (« joie de vivre » as the french say). But is there only lust for life, or lust for (religious) provocation too ?

A lot of people see here an allusion to Leonardo da Vinci’s drawing « The Last Supper », which presents Jesus and the twelve apostles.

The travesty artist « Big Bertha » (who is a christian herself) is quoted by the newspaper « 20 Minutes » with the words:

« This image of the last supper, this religion, I join it ». (Big Bertha, Travesty Artist)

Though, many catholics, but as well believers of other religions, are shocked and see here a blasphemy. The « Conference of Bishops of France » complained in a Press Release about « scenes of derision and mockery about Christianity, what we profoundly regret ».

Following the numerous complaints about alleged blasphemy, there have been reactions of the organisers and actors :

Thomas Jolly, the artistic director for the opening ceremony, explains in a french TV interview that his artistic intention was to present a pagan celebration around the greek god Dionysus. He says :  

« In my work you will never find any intention of mockery or to disparage anyone. I wanted to make a ceremony that repairs, a ceremony that reconciliates, a ceremony that reconfirms the values of our republic : liberty, equality, fraternity. » (Thomas Jolly, artistic director of the opening ceremony)

Philippe Katerine, the actor who played the « blue Dionysus », explained:

« I am sorry, if it has shocked certain persons. This was not the intention. » (Philippe Katerine, actor)

Anne Descamps, PR Manager of the french organisation team, gave a similar statement.

The british « Daily Mail » reported, that the video of the opening ceremony got deleted from the Official Olympic Games Youtube Channel.

Olympic Medal Table: Which country performed best ?

On 11 august 2024, the USA is the overall medal champion, having collected 126 medals in total (40 gold, 44 silver and 42 bronze).

China comes on the second position, with 91 medals in total (40 gold, 27 silver and 24 bronze).

Japan is number 3 with 45 medals (20 gold, 12 silver and 13 bronze).

France (number 5) has a total of 64 medals (16 gold, 26 silver, 22 bronze).

Germany (number 10) got 33 medals (12 gold, 13 silver, 8 bronze).

Austria (number 36) has won 5 medals (2 gold, 0 silver, 3 bronze).

Click here to see the detailed medal list.

What are the new World Records of the 2024 Olympics ?

Men’s 100 meter Freestyle Swimming : 46 :40 seconds is very quick for this distance. The Chinese Pan Zhanle (*2004) did dit !

Men’s 1500 meter Freestyle Swimming : The american Robert Finke (Bobby Finke, *1999) lives in Clearwater/ Florida. In Paris, he cleared the water and established a new world record – with a mark of 14 :30 :67 minutes.

Women’s 4 X 100 meter medley relay swimming :  American women swim very fast too : Regan Smith (*2002), Gretchen Walsh (*2003), Lilly King (*1997) and Torri Huske (* 2002) did the distance in  3 :49 :63 minutes, which made them to the owners of the new world record.

Mixed 4 x 400 meter Relay : Again the USA. This team – composed of Shamier Little (female, *1995), Kaylyn Brown (female, *2004), Vernon Norwood (male, *1992), Bryce Deadmon (male *1997) – finished the run in just 03 :07 :41 minutes.

Archery : Miss Lim Sihyeon from the Republic of Korea (* 2003) realized a new world record in the category « women’s individual ». (Women 72 Arrows 70 m Round, Mark 694)

Sport Climbing: Aleksandra Miroslaw from Poland (* 1994) set a new world best result in « women’s speed climbing » with a mark of 6.06.

Pole Vault : 6,25 meter is the new world record in this discipline, realized by the Swede Armand Duplantis (*1999).

(These records are still subject to formal ratification at the moment of the publishing of this article. The list is not necessarily complete.)

Special moments of the 2024 Olympics

The full Olympic Games Schedule is available on the IOC website.

11 august : Tom Cruise jumps from the roof of a football stadium

The final ceremony of the summer olympic games in Paris was celebrated in the football stadium « Stade de France », in a close suburb of Paris. Thomas Jolly, the artistic director for the opening ceremony, was in charge of the final ceremony too. As can be seen in a video, the american actor Tom Cruise, who was attached to a rope, glided down from the roof of the stadium. On the ground, the mayor of Los Angeles handed him the Olympic Flag. Then, a movie was shown with Tom Cruise riding a motorbike with the flag through the streets of Paris. Mister Cruise does not wear a helmet for neither of these stunts.  With these scenes, the actor did symbolically combine the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris with the next Olympic Games in 2028, which will take place in Los Angeles.

4 august : Tennis : Novak Djokovic wins Olympic Gold

The famous serbian tennis player (*1987) is currently listed number two on the international ATP List, behind the Italian Jannik Sinner (*2001).

Djokovic’ victory against the Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz (*2003) – number 3 on the ATP-List- in the Parisian Roland Garros stade brought him olympic gold. During the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, Djokovic had already won an olympic bronze medal.

The world’s best tennis players, that win all major tennis titles plus an olympic gold medal, are in the so-called « Golden Slam Group » : Steffi Graf, Serena Williams, André Agassi, Rafael Nadal – and from now on Novak Djokovic too.

4 august : First Olympia Medal in history for Cape Verde Islands (Cabo Verde)

The boxer David de Pina (27 years) got a bronze medal in the 51 kg weight class. This means the first olympian medal in history for the small portuguese speaking country in the Atlantic Ocean and its 611 000 inhabitants. CNN Portugal informed that the athlete had interrupted his olympic training during two months, in order to work on construction sites in Portugal and earn money to provide for his family.

2 august : Judo : Teddy Riner (France) wins his third Olympic Gold Medal

The 35 year-old Judoka became Olympic Champion already at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London and the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. Now he earned his third Champion title by a victory over Kim Minjong from South Korea. The stage for the competition was the 15th district of Paris – the very place where Teddy Riner started to practice sport when he was 5 years old …

1 august : A women boxing match with questions about testosterone

The fight between the italian boxer Angela Carini and the Algerian Imane Khelif ended after only 46 seconds. Miss Carini abandoned, because her counterpart was extraordinarily strong :

« I preferred to stop for my health. I have never felt a punch like this.” (Angela Carini, Boxer)

The other boxer, Imane Khelif, was not allowed to participate in a female boxing competition in 2023 due to a « special test » realized by the International Boxing Association. According to this test, she has X and Y chromosomes, which is a male structure. However, concerning the civil status, Miss Khelif has always been a woman.

This boxing encounter triggered many comments concerning the situation of intersex and transgender athletes, about discrimination and the legitimacy of gender tests.

28 july : A convicted rapist in the dutch beach volleyball team

Steven van de Velde (*1994) is a talented beach volleyball player, but he has a dark past too : In 2016 he got a 4-year prison sentence for having abused a 12 year old girl. The BBC quotes him as follows :  

“I can’t reverse it, so I will have to bear the consequences. It has been the biggest mistake of my life.” (Steven Van de Velde, Volleyball Player)

His participation in the Olympic Games is due to a decision of the Dutch Olympic Committee, but it caused some controversy among the spectators. 90 000 people had signed an online petition to exclude Van de Velde from the Olympic Games, and he was booed when playing his first match in the Eiffel Tower Stadium, which he lost against the italian team.

28 july : Embarrassing : Confusion of the national anthems …

Basketball : Puerto Rico plays against South Sudan. But : the orchestra plays the wrong anthem for the South Sudanese Team.

What the musicians played, is the anthem of Sudan, from which South Sudan got independent in 2011, following a war period of 50 years in which 2,5 mio people died.

Let’s remind some quick facts about the two african countries :

Sudan (capital Khartoum) has a surface of 1,86 mio square kilometres and a population of 50,5 mio inhabitants. The national languages are Arabic and English, the GDP per capita is 2800 USD (in 2023). Especially critical zones of Sudan are Darfur, Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile.

South Sudan (capital Juba) has a surface of 644 000 square kilometres and a population of 12,7 mio inhabitants. The national languages are Arabic and English, the GDP per capita is 1600 USD (in 2017). The overall situation in South Sudan is still difficult after its independence. There have been violent ethnic conflicts and a hunger crisis that concerns more than 50% of the population.

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