Over 4,000 children gather at Porte de La Chapelle Arena for the Paris launch of Olympic and Paralympic Week 2024
The eighth edition of Olympic and Paralympic Week was launched today at an event organised by Paris 2024 in partnership with Danone, the Ile de France academic region, the Ile de France Regional Olympic and Sports Committee (CROSIF), the French Paralympic and Sports Committee (CPSF), the City of Paris, the sports movement and school and university sports federations. Held at the Porte de La Chapelle Arena, the event was attended by more than 4,000 children, who were given the chance to learn about and try out various physical activities alongside Typhaine Soldé and Jackson Richardson.
““Celebrating the Games and athletes from around the world”: the motto of this eighth and final edition of Olympic and Paralympic Week before the Paris 2024 Games rings out louder than ever as the countdown to an exceptional summer nears its climax. Since 2017, Olympic and Paralympic Week has raised awareness among more than 5 million young people with regard to the benefits of sport and other key topics such as disability and inclusion through sport. This year has seen even more projects with a Para sports dimension, 6,200 in all.” Tony Estanguet, Paris 2024 President
“I am very proud to be a patron of this latest Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Week as a Danone athlete because I believe teaching young people about sport and disability is vital. At the launch event, I was able to meet thousands of children and encourage them to exercise more and enjoy a balanced diet to enhance their mental and physical well-being. People’s mindsets and habits must be changed, and for that we need everyone.” Typhaine Soldé, Paralympic athlete
Danone, Paris 2024 official partner, wanted to support this event in order to promote the importance of eating more healthily and exercising more from a very young age in order to enjoy lifelong good health.
“Danone is delighted and proud to be a partner of Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Week, and to be involved in this fantastic event aimed at thousands of children. It was a great opportunity to raise awareness of the need to eat more healthily and exercise more, with support from Danone athletes. We are convinced that good health stems from a balanced diet and remain determined to do everything possible to transform the lives of today’s youngsters, who are the parents of tomorrow, for the better." Simon Van De Steen, Danone’s Paris 2024 partnership director
This ‘Champions’ Day’ marks the start of a week jam-packed with events all over France designed to teach children about the numerous benefits of daily exercise as well as promote the values of Olympism and Paralympism with four months to go until the Games begin. This year, with 11,500 schools and educational institutions involved, more than 2 million children will be reached and 7,000 projects have been launched. Over 5 million children have participated in Olympic and Paralympic Week, which is now firmly established in the school calendar, since it was first held in 2017.
Building a lasting heritage
The eighth edition of Olympic and Paralympic Week will be the last one held under the Paris 2024 banner. However, this annual event is set to continue after the Games. Olympic and Paralympic Week, along with the Génération 2024 platform, will be entrusted to the French National Olympic Committee (CNOSF), the French Paralympic and Sports Committee (CPSF) and the Ministries of National Education, Higher Education and Sport.
The other Paris 2024 youth programmes, including “1,2,3 swim!” (20,000 participants in 2023) and Impact 2024 (half of whose participants are children), will also continue under the leadership of the National Sports Agency (ANS).
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