Paris Olympics 2024: The Paris Olympics are just days away. To help you plan, here’s a day-by-day guide to all the key events.
Team GB and Medal Expectations
Team GB is sending a squad of 327 athletes. UK Sport has set an ambitious target of 50 to 70 medals.
Opening and Closing Dates
The Games open on Friday, 26 July, and close on Sunday, 11 August. However, some sports start as early as Wednesday, 24 July.
Early Starts for Football and Rugby Sevens
Due to the packed schedule, some events begin before the opening ceremony. Football and rugby sevens group games are among the early starters.
France vs. USA: A Double Bill
At 15:30, their men’s sevens will be France, featuring the former’s captain, Antoine Dupont. The French women’s team won silver in Tokyo in 2020 but did not participate in the men’s sevens.
At 20:00 hours, Marseille has a French country broad football group led by Thierry Henry, and they’ll be gambling in opposition to the USA. It has been accounted that in 2008, US guys participated in the Olympic video games for the first time, and they did not begin as a way to clinch any medal when considering 1904.
Brit Watch
GB has no male football team for the Olympics. They know how to go about it except during London 2012.
There is also no GB men’s sevens team in Paris 2024, as they failed to qualify.
World Watch
Uzbekistan faces Spain in one of the football group games at 14:00. This is the first time a Uzbekistan team or any central Asian nation has qualified for the Games.
In men’s sevens, holders Fiji play debutants Uruguay at 16:00 at the Stade de France.
Expert Knowledge: US Men’s Football History
The US last won a men’s football medal in 1904. That year, they won two medals because only three teams competed: one from Canada and two from St Louis. The St Louis teams finished second and third, which counts as US medals in IOC records.
Women’s Football Group Stage Begins
The women’s football group stage starts with defending champions Canada playing New Zealand at 16:00 and hosts France facing Colombia at 20:00.
Men’s Sevens Quarter-Finals
The men’s sevens will be in the quarter-finals by 20:00. Fiji, the two-time Olympic champions, are in action. New Zealand, the runners-up last time, play Ireland at 15:30 in the final pool game of the day.
Brit Watch: Archery
Team GB’s archers participate in the ranking round for individual events. This preliminary stage seeds archers for the main competition and does not eliminate anyone.
World Watch: US Women’s Football
Emma Hayes, who recently left Chelsea, will coach the US women at the Olympic level for the first time when they face Zambia at 20:00. The US women’s team won four of the first five Olympic titles but have only medaled once since 2012 with a bronze in Tokyo.
Expert Knowledge: France’s Handball Team
The women’s handball event starts on the same day. France, the defending world champions, face Hungary at 18:00. They wisely avoided the powerhouse teams of Norway, Denmark, and South Korea.
Opening Ceremony Highlights
The opening ceremony starts at 18:30. About 300,000 people will watch from the banks of the River Seine as a parade of 10,000 athletes takes place on boats. The finale will be at the Trocadero.
Logistical Challenges and Security
This unique ceremony format comes with logistical and security challenges. Organizers decided to limit spectator numbers at the water’s edge earlier this year.
Brit Watch: None in Action
No Team GB athletes will be in action on the day of the opening ceremony.
World Watch: None in Action
There are no events scheduled on the day of the opening ceremony.
Expert Knowledge: Rehearsals for the Ceremony
More than 90 boats will be involved in the opening ceremony, and the athletes and various performers will be on these boats. Theatre director Thomas Jolly, the show’s artistic director, mentioned that full rehearsals on the river are not possible. Instead, boat captains were rehearsing at a sailing center inside giant hangars.
