Provocative Places: 2024 Paris Olympics

16 October 2024 -

This summer’s Olympic Games in Paris set out to be the most sustainable in history. Listing one of its environmental commitments as ‘building less, better, and usefully’, the organisers fulfilled this aim by adapting existing historic landmarks and venues, by building environmentally-sound temporary structures, and by considering how buildings could benefit communities in the long term.

95% of the Games were hosted in existing venues or eco-friendly temporary structures. The main venue was the Stade de France, originally built in 1998 to host the football World Cup, now updated to run on clean energy supplies. Chatillon Architects undertook a $500 million renovation of the Grand Palais (Fig. 1), originally designed for the 1900 World Expo, to host fencing and taekwondo. They increased the building’s capacity from 3000 to 9000, installed a temperature-controlled floor, and upgraded the windows, securing the structure’s future as a venue for fashion shows and art exhibitions. The Chateau de Versailles (Fig. 2) received funding to adapt its spaces to provide a suitably majestic location for the equestrian events and modern pentathlon. In an instance of full-circle reuse, the Stade du Matin, the main venue for the Paris Olympics in 1924, was also upgraded to host hockey.

The massive costs of hosting an Olympic Games have led to criticism and calls for the International Olympic Committee to reform the bidding and selection process. Financing the Games can be a strain on even the wealthiest countries, such as the Beijing Olympics in 2008 (estimated at $52.7 billion), the London Olympics in 2012 (estimated at £8.77 billion), and the Tokyo Olympics in 2020 (estimated at $35 billion). Encouraging cities to develop more sustainable strategies is a key part of making the event more financially viable, but the ability to spend less is still rooted in the fact that money has historically been spent on developing sporting infrastructure. Paris has hosted international sporting events before: for example, in the Roland-Garros complex in Paris and the National Velodrome in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines.

Whilst reuse is positive environmentally, it does not address the overarching issues of inclusivity and equity in hosting the Games. Sustainability also involves thinking beyond the immediate and intense usage of the sites and promoting the notion that the architectural, cultural, and societal legacy is just as important as the Games themselves. Only time will tell if the Paris 2024 Olympic Games succeeded in this commitment.

Started by the DHS Ambassadors in 2022, the Design History Society’s Provocative Objects and Places blog series looks at spaces and objects that challenge and confront us as design historians.

Past topics have ranged from the ancient Colosseum in Rome to the ultramodern Antilia in Mumbai; pink razors and Barbies to Lalique’s Bacchantes vase and nineteenth-century asylum photography. The full collection of previous posts can be found here: https://www.designhistorysociety.org/blog/category/provocative-objects-spaces

We invite submissions for guest blog posts from students, early career researchers, and established academics to those with a general interest in design history. Post can be on any object or place from any era, anywhere in the world, which in some way incites discussion and debate.

Post should be 500-800 words in length, accompanied by at least one image with associated credits and clearances, and a short bio. Please send to the DHS Senior Administrator, Dr Jenna Allsopp designhistorysociety@gmail.com

References

Jardim, Douglas. “Dezeen’s guide to the architecture of the Paris 2024 Olympics”. Dezeen. July 24, 2024
Accessed Sep 25, 2024 https://www.dezeen.com/2024/07...

McBride, James, Noah Berman, and Melissa Manno. “The Economics of Hosting the Olympic Games”. Council on Foreign Relations. July 20, 2024.
Accessed Sep 25,2024 https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/economics-hosting-olympic-games#chapter-title-0-1

Morris, Neal. “Olympics 2024: what can architects learn from overlay design?”. RIBA Journal. August 8, 2024.
Accessed Sep 25, 2024 https://www.ribaj.com/intellig...

"Building Less, Better, and Usefully". Paris 2024 Olympics.
Accessed Sep 25, 2024 https://olympics.com/en/paris-...