As the countdown for Paris Olympic Games 2024 continues, the athletes can finally catch a glimpse of the place that will serve as their abode for the duration of the marquee quadrennial event. The athletes' village, commonly known as the Olympic Games Village, was officially inaugurated in Paris on Thursday, February 29. (More Sports News)
Nearly 15,000 athletes from all over the world will stay in the village for the Paris Olympics and Paralympics. It is situated on the banks of the Seine river between Saint-Denis, Saint-Ouen-sur-Seine and the Ile Saint-Denis, towards the north of the French capital and in the vicinity of the Stade de France.
Athletes will descend on the village from July 12 onwards, before the Olympic Games commence on July 26 (and go on till August 11), and the Paralympic Games begin on August 28 (continue till September 8).
“We will welcome the world here, to a place that showcases the best of France,” Paris 2024 president and three-time canoe Olympic champion Tony Estanguet said. “We're filled with emotion and look forward to seeing the transformation of the village, with 200 delegations, 10,000 Olympic athletes and 5,000 Paralympic athletes,” he added.
French President Emmanuel Macron, who visited the site for the inauguration ceremony, promised to swim in the Seine river which is being cleaned up for the Olympics.
The inauguration ceremony was also attended by numerous titans of French sport, including three-time Olympic sprint gold medallist Marie-Jose Perec, boxing champion Brahim Asloum (Olympic gold at Sydney 2000) and judoka Aurelien Diesse.
“The village is the first place you visit.. it stays in the memory of any athlete”, Asloum ruminated. “It’s a real pleasure to be here on this important day,” said Diesse, who will represent France in the -100kg category at the Paris Games and happened to grow up in the same district as the athletes' village.
“The village will soon be our home, in a few months from now, so it’s nice to see that the area is taking shape. And as it does, the image of the Games is taking shape in my mind,” he added.
