Paris 2024 – and 100 years ago
The Olympic Games are back in Paris after an absence of 100 years. Not surprisingly, a lot has changed in the past century, but the fascination with outstanding sporting achievement remains.
1924 – on the outskirts of the city
A hundred years ago, most of the venues were located outside the city. Only the Velodrome d'Hiver cycling arena was close to the Eiffel Tower. Most of the Olympic events took place in Colombes, a municipality in the greater Paris area, where the former Olympic stadium was located (photo). It will also be used in 2024, as a field hockey stadium.
2024 – right in the heart of the city
At this year's Games, the Olympic organizers are bringing the competitions into the heart of the city. Temporary venues have been errected near the Eiffel Tower, on the Place de la Concorde, in front of the Invalides and in the Grand Palais. Even the Seine will be part of the action.
1924 – The first opening ceremony in what would become a tradition
At the opening ceremony of the 1924 Olympic Games, all the teams, led by the Greek team, entered the Olympic Stadium for the first time and lined up there before the Games were officially opened. From then on, this procedure became a mainstay of the Olympic Games.
2024 – A different kind of opening ceremony
The opening ceremony of the 2024 Games will be unusual. The athletes will not gather in the stadium, but will travel down the Seine in 600 boats – past Notre Dame to Pont Alexandre III, where the opening ceremony will take place.
1924 – hardly any women athletes
Of the 3,089 athletes at the 1924 Summer Games, only 135 were women. At that time, Olympic competitions for women had already been held for 24 years. However, the number of female disciplines was still small; medals were awarded to women only in fencing, swimming, diving and tennis.
2024 – parity between the sexes
The organizers have announced a total of 10,500 participants for the 2024 Olympics, of which 5,250 will be men and 5,250 women. The Paris 2024 Games will therefore be the first with full gender parity in terms of the number of athletes involved.
1924 – Chariots of Fire
England's Harold Abrahams won the 100 meters in 10.6 seconds. This was an Olympic record at the time. The duel between Abrahams, a Jew, and Scotsman Eric Liddell, a Catholic, was later immortalized in the Oscar-winning feature film "Chariots of Fire."
2024 – under 10 seconds
100 years after Abrahams' record, his time probably wouldn't even get him into the final. In Tokyo, Marcell Jacobs won gold in 9.80 seconds. In Paris, Noah Lyles (second from right) of the USA is the favorite. His best time is 9.83 seconds.
1924 – Future Tarzan wins gold
One of the most successful athletes 100 years ago was American swimmer Johnny Weissmuller, who won gold three times in the Olympic pool and also competed in water polo. Weissmuller later became famous as a Hollywood actor, playing Tarzan in 12 films.
2024 – homegrown NBA superstar
There's no indication that France's Victor Wembanyama is set to star in any Tarzan movies in the foreseeable future. However, the 2.24-meter (7'35") basketball player looks to be on his was to NBA superstardom on the basketball court
1924 – sporting blast from the past
Among the sports included in the Olympic lineup in 1924 was polo, a rather exotic pastime compared to the other events. Perhaps that's one reason why it was dropped after the 1936 Games in Berlin.
2024 - breaking, aka. breakdancing
100 years on, the IOC is trying to attract a younger audience and has been expanding the canon of sports for some time now. In Paris in 2024, breaking will be included as an Olympic sport for the first time.