The Paris Olympics are set to showcase the City of Light in all its splendor, with events taking place at iconic locations. The Eiffel Tower, one of the most famous landmarks in Paris, will host beach volleyball and judo and wrestling events. The Champs de Mars park at the foot of the tower will host judo and wrestling. The Eiffel Tower, unveiled in 1889 for the World Fair, has become the capital’s symbol and is also a working telecoms tower used for radio and TV transmissions.
Winners at the Games will receive a small part of the iron colossus, each medal containing an 18g crumb of original iron. The Grand Palais exhibition hall will host fencing and taekwondo battles, featuring a glass-and-steel masterpiece created for the World Fair of 1900. The airy nave has hosted giant installations commissioned from some of the world’s leading artists and has been flooded to make the biggest ice rink in the world.
Place de la Concorde, the vast, paved square at the foot of the Champs-Elysees avenue, will serve as an urban sports hub, hosting skateboarding, 3×3 basketball, BMX freestyle, and breakdancing. The largest square in Paris is defined by its huge gold obelisk, one of a pair originally erected by Ramses II outside the temple in Luxor in Egypt.
The Place of Versailles will host dressage, showjumping, and equestrian cross country events, as well as hosting pentathlon events. The park, transformed into a home of French royalty in the 17th century, has been a world heritage site since 1979 and is a firm favorite on the Paris tourist trail.
Sailing contests will take place in Marseille, France’s second city, better known as the home of Olympique Marseille football team. Over 300 sailors from across the world will battle it out on the sapphire Mediterranean waters off the city.