The first non-virtual event on the road to the Olympic Games took place on Saturday, March 23, 2024, with the "Volunteer Convention" at the La Défense Arena in Nanterre.
For those who know their way around Paris a bit: The stadium is within sight of the Grande Arche, north of Paris.
All volunteers for the upcoming Olympic Games were invited, including reserves like my wife. According to announcements, 20,000 out of 45,000 invitees attended, though this number doesn’t match the figures reported in the press. Additionally, 2,000 people followed the event via livestream.
Since France remains on the highest security alert level and the attacks in Moscow have not eased the situation, we had to pass by heavily armed police officers from the Police Nationale. Although I understand the necessity, I still feel uncomfortable seeing men with machine guns and their fingers on the trigger. This sight will likely accompany us during the Games as well.
Behind the police, a group of young women handed us a union flyer to inform us about our rights. After all, we are in France.
Among others, Tony Estanguet hosted the program, which lasted about two hours. The next steps for the volunteers were briefly explained. In April, we will receive a schedule for our briefings, which will start in June. A first aid training course can be taken in May, but it is not mandatory. Starting in May, we can pick up our uniforms at one of the designated Decathlon stores. The uniforms include a pair of shoes, 2 pairs of pants, 4 pairs of socks, 4 shirts, a rain jacket, a vest, and a hat (See photo gallery!). The complete set will be issued in an Olympic sports bag.
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| The promotional clip for the uniform can be downloaded here. (4.6MB) |
The symbolism of the Games' design was briefly discussed. There were also a few words about the torch relay and the medals, which were displayed in the hall before the event.
Here are some highlighted figures:
- 45,000 volunteers were recruited for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
- The team consists of 50% men and 50% women.
- One in three volunteers comes from the grassroots sports movement.
- All French departments will be represented by volunteer workers.
- 20% of applicants come from one of 150 countries.
- 5%+ of volunteers have a disability.
- Almost 50% of the volunteers at the Paralympic Games will have previously been engaged in the Olympic Games.
All in all, the day was quite nice. For me personally, the conversations with some of the attendees were the most interesting—where they came from and what tasks they expect. What exactly awaits us is still unclear to most of those involved. Somehow, I had hoped to be better informed after this event, which was quite naive for an event with 45,000 people. So, we’ll just have to wait and look forward to the Games.
