The embodiment of everything French, from traditional to modern

The last time Paris hosted the Olympic Games was literally a century ago in 1924, so the anticipation is high. Paris 2024 will take on a completely new approach and put the competitions next to famous Parisian landmarks: The Eiffel Tower, Place de la Concorde, the Château de Versailles, and more.

“With Paris 2024, our ambition is to open a new model to open the Games to more people,” said Tony Estanguet, the president of Paris 2024’s organizing committee. “Our plan is based on taking sport out of its traditional spaces and putting competitions at the heart of the city in front of the most famous Parisian landmarks.”

Some Tokyo Games sports retained

Enthusiasts of the three sports added in the Tokyo Games — surfing, sport climbing, skateboarding — will still have something to look forward to in 2024 as the Paris Games officials decided to retain it. These sports attract a younger crowd and give the Olympics more street cred, so retaining them is a smart move. This also means that we’ll probably see more of Margielyn Didal, who placed 7th in the women’s street skateboarding in Tokyo 2020.

A new sport added

Tokyo 2020 made the Olympics younger and more urban, and it looks like Paris 2024 will be continuing that trend. Breakdancing — yes, breakdancing — will make its Olympic debut in Paris. Breakdancing, or breaking, will include men’s and women’s competitions with head-to-head matchups. Noting how the country has bagged 10 gold medals in dancesport in the 2019 Manila SEA Games, this is really good news for the Philippines. We’ve got what it takes to dominate the world stage of dancing — just take a look at the Pinoy crews like Project P-Noise, SAS Crew, and Manila Soul Crew, who are just waiting for their next platform.

Three sports dropped

One of the perks of being the host country is being able to add sports that they’re strong in. This is why karate made its debut at the Tokyo Games and softball/baseball were reinstated. However, these three sports will not be coming back in the Paris Games. While this idea does not sit well with some countries that have a strong delegation in softball like the US, India, Slovenia, and Czech Republic, the Philippines isn’t too affected because we don’t have a delegation for those sports.

Marathon for all

The Paris 2024 Olympics will not just be reserved for the athletes. In the attempt to become inclusive for all, including spectators, a public marathon will take place on the same day as the elite sporting event where people can run side by side with athletes on the same course, separated only by borders. This invites everyone to have an athletic mindset and to teach the importance of having an active lifestyle to all people, whether beginner or bro, able-bodied or disabled, young or old.

Stronger comeback

23-year-old silver medalist Carlo Paalam, 25-year-old bronze medalist Eumir Marcial, men’s vault 4th placer and gymnast Carlos Yulo, and 22-year-old street skateboarder Margielyn Didal have all pledged to come back stronger in the 2024 Games. In fact, Caloy even stayed in Japan to train for his his next world championship event. Our young athletes have so much potential. And with support and continued momentum, there’s no other way but up.

Hidilyn still unsure about Paris 2024