Every four years, the world gets Olympic fever, but this one hits different. The 2020 Olympics were, for obvious reasons, delayed, and the resulting Games in 2021 were a muted, rather depressing affair that largely took place in empty stadiums due to a COVID outbreak in Tokyo. This means anticipation is at an all-time high, and it looks like Paris 2024 — or, to give it its official name, the XXXIII Olympiad — could end up being the biggest, most-watched Games ever. Here’s what you need to know about the Paris Summer Olympics 2024.
The Olympics will kick off with the opening ceremony on Friday, July 26, and the Games go on until Sunday, Aug. 11, ending with the closing ceremony. However, if you can’t wait until then, a few events start before the official opening ceremony. Soccer and rugby sevens begin Wednesday, July 24, and archery and handball commence on Thursday, July 25.
Athletes will be competing for a total of 329 gold medals across 32 sports. Breakdancing is making its debut, while skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing are notching their second Olympic appearance. Here’s the full list of sports:
The competitions change with every Games — there are fewer weightlifting events this time, for instance. The reason every sport has at least two events is that they are split into male and female categories. Sports with odd numbers of events have one or more competitions designated for men or women only.
In total, 184 countries are participating in the Paris Olympics, with approximately 10,500 athletes taking part. The number of competitors each nation is sending varies widely — several smaller countries are just sending one athlete, while the United States tops the list with 588. In addition to these 184 countries, there are also 45 athletes from Russia and Belarus. Both countries were suspended from the Games by the International Olympic Committee, so the athletes will be competing as “Individual Neutral Athletes,” shortened to AIN (in French).
The countries, and the number of athletes representing them, are:
An additional 36 athletes are competing as part of the Refugee Olympic team.
The Olympic schedule always changes due to events going over time and unforeseen incidents. However, the International Olympic Committee has posted a detailed timetable. You can search by event and date, and the schedule will be updated when event times change.
NBCUniversal has been the exclusive U.S. broadcaster of the Olympic Games since 1988. Their current deal with the International Olympic Committee extends to the 2032 Games.
Peacock will be streaming every event live, a first for the Games. NBC will be showing at least nine hours of Olympic coverage every day, with a three-hour show featuring highlights, analysis and entertainment every evening. You can also watch events across the USA Network, GOLF Channel, CNBC and E!.
In addition to Peacock, NBC will also have plenty of live coverage, highlights and commentary on the network’s official Olympics sites and apps:
The opening ceremony is scheduled to kick off on Friday, July 26, in Paris, at 7:30 p.m. local time. With the time difference, that’s 1:30 p.m. EST in the United States. For the first time ever, the ceremony isn’t taking place within an Olympic stadium — instead, the athletes will be carried on boats in a flotilla on the River Seine. More than 300,000 spectators will be watching in bleachers along the riverbanks. The procession will end at the Jardins du Trocadéro, where the final elements of the opening ceremony will take place.
The Paris Olympics will be using 35 venues in all. Most are in or around Paris, but a few are further away — in Lille, Vaires-sur-Marne, Marseille, Lyon, Bordeaux, Saint-Étienne, Nice, Nantes and Châteauroux. Mostly, these are early-rounds soccer or nautical events. The surfing is taking place in Tahiti, which is part of French Polynesia, almost 10,000 miles away from the rest of the events.
Within Paris, the organizers have made an admirable commitment to sustainability, mostly using preexisting venues and locations rather than, as cities often do, building huge venues for the Games that subsequently lie empty after they conclude.
The Stade de France, the country’s biggest football stadium, will be hosting the athletics and rugby sevens, while Stade Roland Garros, famous for hosting the French Open, will be the setting for the tennis and boxing events. Swimming is split between the Paris La Défense Arena and Paris Aquatic Centre, while several of Paris’ public squares are being temporarily transformed into sporting venues. The Place de la Concorde will host basketball, breakdancing, BMXing and skateboarding — the other Places have to be a bit jealous of it getting all the cool ones — while the Grand Palais will host fencing and taekwondo. It’s going to be an exciting time to be in Paris!
At this point, resold tickets are the only ones available. Luckily, there is an official resale platform so people with tickets they can’t use can sell them on the official app.
Let’s be honest, it’s late in the day to plan a trip to the Olympics — they’re less than a month away — but if you’re willing to pay, there’s always a way. The official advice from the IOC is to try Airbnb, advice that may or may not have anything to do with their sponsorship of the event. By April, more than 50% of the city’s hotel rooms were booked out for the duration of the Games. However, the closer the Games get, the more likely a bargain might be available, so there’s always a chance.
We all know Paris is beautiful. It’s famous for it — if another city is incredibly beautiful, it might find itself compared to Paris. Known as the City of Light and the City of Love for its reputation of being incredibly romantic, Paris is bursting with fascinating places. The Louvre is of course world-famous as the home of the Mona Lisa and a lot more beautiful art, but Paris is also home to the Musee D’Orsay, the Eiffel Tower, Notre-Dame de Paris, and much, much more.
The 2024 Paris Olympics promise world-class competition against the backdrop of one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Get in on the action from home with our roundup of broadcast and streaming options.
For viewers in the United States, NBC.com, NBCOlympics.com, the Peacock app, NBC Olympics app, NBC Sports app and NBC app are the best ways to watch Paris 2024 online. All events will be livestreamed and highlight shows will be broadcast nightly.
The 2028 Olympics are headed to the United States. They will take place in Los Angeles from July 14 to July 30, 2028.
Paris has hosted the Olympics twice before, in 1900 and 1924. The 1900 games marked the first time women were allowed to compete, with Swiss-born New Yorker Hélène de Pourtalès becoming the first female Olympic champion, in the sport of sailing.
Read more: How to watch the Olympics 2024
