European Central: Examining The Impact And Legacy Of The Paris 2024 Olympics
At the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris, France, the host country celebrated an impressive medal haul. France won 64 medals, including 16 gold medals, finishing fifth in the Paris 2024 medal count. Public spirits were high in the French capital and around the country throughout the summer. The French public not only celebrated their country’s athletic accomplishments, as well as reveled in the cheerful and inclusive atmosphere generated by the Games. This jubilation was further propelled by the significant economic benefits the Games brought to Paris. Yet, it was also a facade, masking social tensions surrounding the event.
The spirit of togetherness also extended, at least momentarily, to France’s fractured politics. Political divisions in the country, heightened by an indecisive legislative election early in July, were temporarily put aside as political leaders and the public sought to present a united front in the face of international media attention brought by the Olympics. Gabriel Attal, France’s prime minister at the time, remarked that ‘Today, no responsible politician can say that the French are durably and definitively divided and that there are not possible levers to bring them together.’
Adding to the optimistic mood in France was the fiscal prudence exercised by the French government when organizing the Games. Much attention has already been paid to the low-cost of the 2024 Paris Olympics compared with previous events. The Olympics are estimated to have cost approximately $10 billion, though only about $2.2 billion came from France’s treasury. This is significantly lower than the cost of the previous Olympics in Tokyo, the most expensive ever at $20 billion. The relative low-cost of the Paris Olympics was due, in part, to the decision made by officials to rely on existing sports infrastructure, including venues built for the French Open and the 2016 UEFA European Football Championship. Nevertheless, $4.5 billion was still spent on infrastructure, including $1.6 billion for the Olympic Village in Seine-Saint-Denis.
The Paris Olympics also had an overall positive impact on France’s economy. According to Agnès Bénassy-Quéré, deputy governor of the Bank of France, the short-term economic effect of hosting the Olympic Games was an estimated third quarter GDP growth rate of 0.25%. This boost was most evident in tourism-related industries, such as hotels, restaurants, and transportation. In the long-term, hosting the Olympics could, according to Euronews, put a spotlight on Paris and ‘may increase first-time visitors to the city and country during the next few years.’ This potential influx of tourists could drive further economic growth. Visitors drawn by the Games could boost Paris’s local hospitality and retail sectors, as well as explore cultural sites that showcase French heritage.
While hosting the Olympics has brought economic benefits to France, it has also placed considerable strains on sections of Parisian society. Many of the new infrastructure projects built for the Olympics were constructed in Paris’s economically-deprived banlieues (suburbs), which are home to large ethnic minority and migrant communities. In Seine-Saint-Denis, a banlieue north-east of Paris, officials evicted 400 migrants to clear space for the Olympic Village. Authorities also removed 60 squats in the banlieue to accommodate further Olympic sites. Activists and residents criticized these measures, raising concerns that the infrastructure projects could pave the way for gentrification of the banlieues and unaffordable housing costs. City officials, however, mainly dismissed residents’ concerns. Moreover, advocates of the infrastructure projects insisted that they represented a much-needed step toward urban renewal. Paris’s actions are part of a well-established practice among host cities of ‘hiding the undesirables’ in anticipation of a rise in tourism and international media attention.
While still significant, the social pressures Paris experienced were softened by the city’s cooperation with a reformist approach pursued by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in recent years. In 2014, the IOC adopted the Olympic Agenda 2020, a list of detailed recommendations designed to ‘make the Olympic Games fit for the future.’ In particular, the IOC sought to reform ‘the Olympics to better suit the host city’s development.’ This was achieved by lowering the bidding cost for prospective host cities, encouraging host cities to implement a sustainability strategy, and permitting host cities to rely on existing sports infrastructure (as noted previously). Paris took advantage of these reforms, and not only to save money. The city merged its plans for the Olympics with ‘Grand Paris’, a regional development initiative aimed at revitalizing the Paris metropolitan area. By aligning the Olympics with its broader urban development goals, Paris has created a foundation for lasting economic benefits that extend beyond the event itself.
Time will ultimately reveal whether the economic and social costs of hosting the Olympics were worthwhile for France. However, what is certain is that the Olympics had a decidedly positive impact on France’s global image. French President Emmanuel Macron opined after the closing ceremony that the Olympics showed the world ‘the true face of France.’ It seemed that global audiences liked what they saw. Going into the Paris 2024 Olympics, global interest was already higher than it had been ahead of the Tokyo Olympics. Viewers were further captivated by the event. According to a poll from Ipsos, 75% of people believed that the Paris Olympics united people around the world. Strong majorities of respondents also said that the Paris Olympics inspired both themselves and future generations.
Global Interest Levels in the Olympics (%)
The Paris Olympics will be an important opportunity for the world to come together
The 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France offers several important lessons for future hosts. Host cities and nations, following France’s example, should establish a close relationship with the IOC and adhere to its reformist agenda. This will ensure that budgets do not balloon, that infrastructure projects are sustainable, and that the hosts enjoy the economic benefits brought by the Games. Countries can also take advantage of hosting the Olympics to sooth internal tensions, as well as improve the nation’s global image or educate worldwide audiences about the host country’s unique history and vibrant culture. Future hosts should also learn from the challenges Paris faced while hosting the Olympics. Special attention must be paid to local communities, especially those with vulnerable populations, which could suffer as a result of hosting the Olympics. Public neglect of these communities and their struggles could inflame existing social tensions, or give rise to new ones.