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In the words of Taylor Swift, baby, let the Olympic Games begin.
The 2024 Olympic Games will begin in Paris, France, on July 26 and run through August 11. This will be the third time the city has hosted the Olympic Games. London is the only other city with three Summer Olympic Games.
The city has been preparing to host the Olympics for years, from building new sporting venues to designing a mascot.
Paris settled on the Phryges for its mascot. The red Phrygian caps — also known as Phrygian hats — have historically been used to symbolize freedom. The cone-like caps have ancient roots, but were also used by French revolutionaries to show allegiance to the cause. The mascot demonstrates the 2024 Olympics' goal to "drive a revolution through sport."
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Paris will be taking advantage of much of its existing infrastructure throughout the Olympics, which helped the city win its bid to host this year's games back in 2017.
For instance, the opening ceremony will take place on Paris' iconic River Seine, making it the first summer Olympics to open outside a stadium. The opening ceremony will set the tone for the Games, giving competitors and attendees new ways to explore the city.
Triathlon competitors will also swim across the River Seine, bike on the iconic Champs-Élysées, and then run through the streets of Paris before ending up at the Pont Alexandre III bridge. Marathon swimming will start and end at the Pont Alexandre III bridge as well. Likewise, marathon runners will take a route from Paris to Versailles and back, honoring the path protesters took during the Women's March on Versailles in 1789.
The closing ceremony will be held at the Stade de France, a stadium that can hold over 77,000 guests. Paris' expansive public transportation system will help athletes and sports fans move throughout the city for the duration of the Olympics.
Paris has also invested billions in new infrastructure for the Olympic Games. The developments include the Olympics Aquatics Centre and the Adidas Arena, both of which can seat thousands of spectators.
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According to the International Olympic Committee, the 2024 Olympics will feature some 10,500 athletes.
All the athletes competing are the best at their sports, and some will be sure to draw attention at the 2024 Olympic Games.
Decorated swimmer Katie Ledecky could secure the record for the most gold medals for an athlete in the women's category if she wins three more medals at the 2024 Games.
Likewise, the US men's and women's athletics teams are favorites in the 100 and 200-meter sprints thanks to Noah Lyles and Sha'Carri Richardson. Lyles ranks No. 1 in the men's 200m going into the Olympics, while Richardson is first in the women's 100m.
Simone Biles' return to the Olympics stage will be one of the most exciting moments of the Games. She's the most decorated gymnast in history but withdrew from multiple events at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics after Biles got the "twisties." But she seems more ready than ever for the Olympics.
Biles won the all-around title at the US Gymnastics Championships on June 2, and she led the US Olympic Gymnastic Trials later the same month. She'll compete at the 2024 Olympics alongside her teammates Jordan Chiles, Suni Lee, Jade Carey, and Hezly Rivera.
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The 2024 Olympic Games will feature 32 sports in its program, some of which have different disciplines within them, like artistic gymnastics versus rhythmic gymnastics.
The 2024 program includes the following sports:
The 2024 games will feature new sports like breaking — also known as breakdancing — and kayak cross, which is a new event in the canoe slalom.
On the flip side, the 2024 Olympics has dropped some sports from its program; baseball, softball, and karate have all been cut this year. The IOC has not given any official reasons for why these sports were dropped.
You can watch the 2024 Olympics on NBC and Telemundo in the US, and they can also be streamed on Peacock and NBCOlympics.com, though you'll need a login or cable verification to stream.
Many tickets for the Paris Olympics sold out months ago. But the IOC released new tickets on July 18 for events, including the Opening Ceremonies, ranging in price from €15 to €2700, or about $16 to $2,938 USD.
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If you can snag last-minute tickets, you will still have to find somewhere to stay during your trip to Paris unless you live locally. Most of the hotels in the area are already sold out, but some places have last-minute availability.
For instance, Airbnb is a worldwide partner of the 2024 Olympics, and it has a landing page set up to specifically help people find lodging for the games. The Paris Olympics also has a list of preferred hotel groups on its website as well as recommendations on affordable lodging like hostels.
Visitors will also need to plan ahead for traveling within Paris during the games. The price of metro tickets during the Olympics will be higher than normal, but the city is making Paris 2024 travel cards available that offer unlimited metro access. The passes can provide access for between one and seven days and will be available from July 20 to September 8. A seven-day card costs €70, which is about $76.
Although the Olympics are an exciting endeavor for Paris, the lead-up to the Games hasn't been stress-free for the city.
Parisians have been widely critical of how much money has been invested in the games — the 2024 Olympics will cost France an estimated $8.2 billion.
Others have raised concerns about pollution in the notoriously filthy Seine, where several Olympic events are set to occur. Some French activists even threatened to protest by pooping in the Seine.
Despite swimming being banned in the Seine since 1923 due to the extensive pollution, athletes for the triathlon and marathon swimming events will be testing the murky waters.
The French government invested more than $1.5 billion over roughly a decade to make the Seine clean enough for Olympic competition, but data from the city of Paris showed that levels of E. coli and other bacteria in the Seine were too high just weeks ahead of the Olympics. However, E. coli levels dropped as the games approached, and on July 17, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo swam in the Seine with other French officials to send the message that clean-up efforts were a success.
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Paris has also been criticized for not providing athletes with air conditioning in their rooms at the Olympic Village, instead opting for an eco-friendly cooling system.
Paris hoped to promote sustainability with their design. But many countries were concerned about the lack of AC, as Paris will be extremely hot during the games. Heat can pose risks to the athletes' health and performance, so some nations are even providing their teams with portable AC units, using more energy than Paris had hoped. Team USA is among them.
France has also been scrutinized for barring its athletes from competing in a hijab or any other religious headwear during the Olympic Games. Athletes from other countries can wear hijabs while they compete because they will adhere to International Olympic Committee rules, not French regulations.
Both the UN and Amnesty International have condemned France's stance. Amnesty International said hijab bans "undermine efforts to make sports more inclusive and mean that Muslim players and athletes who wear a hijab in France will continue to be discriminated against."
To top it off, three aviation unions threatened to strike just before the games were set to begin. The aviation workers demanded bonuses for all airport staff ahead of the busy pre-Olympics travel season. The unions struck a deal with airport management and called off the strike just in time, however.
Despite the setbacks, it's finally time for the Olympic Games to start.
