Paris Olympics: street sports of skating and breakdancing debut

Every Olympic Games has a very busy schedule and the 2024 Paris Games are no exception.

Here are just some of the numbers to crunch:

• The 2024 Summer Olympics is officially the XXXIII Olympiad (the 33rd modern Olympic Games)
• The event will be held between 26 July to 11 August, 2024
• There are 19 days of competition (handball, football and rugby begin from 24 July – before the Opening Ceremony)
• There are 32 sports and 329 events
• A total of 206 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) or nations are competing.
• 10,500 athletes are competing, plus the IOC Refugee Olympic Team*, made up of athletes without an official country, with 36 members (its largest team ever).
• There will be 754 sessions (competitions and ceremonies)

PARIS 2024 OLYMPIC SPORTS
Most events remain similar at each Olympic Summer Games, including sports like swimming, cycling and athletics. But sometimes events are removed, added or changed.

For example, the ancient Olympic sport of chariot racing* was removed due to its danger to both rider and horse, and it wasn’t until London 2012 that women were allowed to participate in boxing.

Now each sport has both male and female events, either in teams or individually. The range of Olympic sports is very wide, including the trampoline, judo, rhythmic gymnastics, shooting and hockey.

NEW SPORTS FOR PARIS 2024
For Paris 2024, four sports are making their Olympic debut*: breakdancing, sport climbing, surfing and skateboarding.

Breakdancing is an urban dance style from the US, and it includes acrobatic movements and stylised footwork* to the beat of the music played by a DJ.

The additional sports were chosen because they are popular with young people and reward creativity and athletic performance.

OLYMPIC VENUES
There are 35 venues hosting Olympic events throughout the 2024 Paris Summer Games.

Many of these are located in the city area of Paris and will feature its iconic landmarks*. One of these is the Eiffel Tower Stadium, a temporary stadium on the Champ de Mars (a public square), where Beach Volleyball will be played against the backdrop of the Eiffel Tower.

Paris’ Stade Roland-Garros*, the home of the tennis Grand Slam*, the French Open, will hold the Olympic tennis events and The Hôtel de Ville — Paris’ city hall will see the start of the men’s and women’s marathon.

Other areas of France will also host events, with the Olympic organisers wanting to spread the Games across the country to showcase its heritage* and to involve more of its communities.

Some of these other regions include Versailles, which is home to a famous royal palace, The Château de Versailles (also known as the Palace of Versailles), will host the equestrian* events, and Marseilles, a region in the south of France, will host the sailing in Marseilles Marina.

One sport will even be held off the mainland of France, with Olympic surfing to ride the waves of Teahupo’o, Tahiti (a territory of France).

OLYMPIC PICTOGRAMS
The Olympic pictograms* have been used as a visual coat of arms symbolising each Olympic sport for over half a century.

For the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics, though, each of the 62 images will illustrate what makes each sport challenging and original. It will also feature a distinctive* tool or a piece of equipment from the sport, such as an arrow for archery or bicycles for cycling. It is also the first time this has been done.

COMPETING NATIONS
Countries competing in the Olympic Games aren’t referred to as nations or countries but as National Olympic Committees.

The NOCs are members of the Olympic Movement, under the leadership of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The mission of the NOCs is to develop, promote and protect the Olympic Movement in their home countries, in line with the Olympic Charter* (an official document of the Olympics).

A total of 206 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) are participating in the Paris Summer Games.

Some of these countries include Albania, American Samoa, Bhutan, Canada, Chinese Taipei, Denmark, Japan, Slovenia, Ukraine, Zimbabwe and Australia.

Athletes from Russia and Belarus cannot compete in the 2024 Olympic Games unless they are politically neutral* due to the ongoing war with Ukraine.

This is not the only time that countries have been unable to compete in an Olympics. Austria, Hungary, Germany, Indonesia, South Africa, Rhodesia, Afghanistan and Kuwait also faced similar sanctions* in the past.

POLL

GLOSSARY

• IOC Refugee Olympic Team: a team of athletes who are refugees, having fled their countries for a better or safer life
• chariot racing: an ancient race between small carriages, or chariots, which were pulled by horses
• Olympic debut: first time at the Olympics
• stylised footwork: dance moves
• iconic landmarks: buildings, statutes or monuments that Paris is well-known for
• Stade Roland-Garros: a tennis complex in Paris with stadiums where the French Open tournament is played
• Grand Slam: the most prestigious tennis competitions in the world
• heritage: history
• equestrian: horse riding
• Olympic pictograms: visual, graphic symbols used to represent each sport played at the Olympics
• distinctive: different and noticeable
• Olympic Charter: an official document with guidelines and rules on how an Olympics event can be organised
• politically neutral: not supporting one leader over another
• sanctions: bans

QUICK QUIZ
1. How many venues are there in the Paris Summer Olympics?
2. What are two new sports to feature in the Paris Olympics?
3. How many days of competition are there?
4. Athletes from which sport will compete in Tahiti?
5. What are the names of two countries that have not been allowed to participate in the Olympics in the past?

LISTEN TO THIS STORY

CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
Kids News has produced a free Paris Olympics education workbook full of classroom activities to support the information in this series.

It has been crafted by one of our expert Kids News teachers and complements the information in these education kit articles.

Sign up to the free Kids News weekly newsletter HERE to access the education workbook plus more news and initiatives.

EXTRA READING
PART 9: Host nation profile