The Eiffel Tower is seen through a net with a part of the logo of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games from the Trocadero square in Paris, France, July 3, 2024.
| Photo Credit: REUTERS
The 2024 Paris Olympics promises to be a grand spectacle featuring a diverse array of sports, showcasing the pinnacle of athletic talent from around the world. Here’s an in-depth look at the various sports that will be contested at this prestigious event.
The 2024 Paris Olympics will feature a total of 329 medal events across 32 diverse sports. These sports encompass a wide range of disciplines, from traditional favourites like athletics, swimming, and gymnastics to newer additions such as sport climbing and skateboarding. Classic team sports, including football, basketball, and hockey, will also be prominent, alongside individual precision sports like archery and shooting.
Water-based competitions will see action in canoe slalom, canoe sprint, rowing, and sailing, while combat sports like boxing, judo, and wrestling highlight strength and strategy. Additionally, multi-discipline events such as the modern pentathlon and triathlon will test athletes’ versatility and endurance.
Definition of Olympic sport
An Olympic sport is defined as a competitive athletic activity recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and governed by an international sports federation.
It encompasses a set of disciplines organized under the governance of these federations, each contributing to the sport’s overall representation at the Olympic Games.
Criteria for inclusion
The eligibility of sports for inclusion in the Olympic program is governed by specific criteria outlined in the Olympic Charter (2023). Only sports governed by international federations recognized by the IOC can be considered. The decision to propose additional sports lies with the Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games, subject to final approval by the IOC Session.
The Olympic Games enforce limits on the number of athletes, coaches, support personnel, and events: approximately 10,500 athletes, 5,000 coaches, and 310 events for the Summer Olympics, and about 2,900 athletes, 2,000 coaches, and 100 events for the Winter Olympics, unless adjusted by the Organizing Committee. These thresholds may be exceeded for the 2028 Summer.
Previously, sports reliant on mechanical propulsion, like motor sports, were ineligible, but this rule was lifted in 2016. Organizations like the FIA and FAI are recognized by the IOC, potentially paving the way for their future inclusion in the Games.
List of all Olympic sports in Paris 2024
- Archery: A test of precision and concentration, archery has been a staple in the Olympics since 1900. Athletes compete individually and in teams, aiming for the target from a distance of 70 meters.
- Aquatics (including swimming, diving, open-water, synchronized swimming, and water polo): Aquatics refers to a category of sports involving activities in or on water
- Badminton: A fast-paced racket sport, badminton has singles and doubles events. Players use lightweight rackets to hit a shuttlecock over a net, aiming to out manoeuvre their opponents.
- Basketball: A team sport where two teams of five players each aim to score points by shooting a ball through the opponent’s hoop. The Olympics also feature 3×3 basketball, a faster-paced variation played on a half-court with three players per team.
- Boxing: Olympic boxing includes weight categories for men and women, where competitors aim to score points through punches while adhering to strict rules of conduct.
- Breaking: Making its Olympic debut in 2024, breaking, also known as breakdancing, is a style of street dance that incorporates athleticism, creativity, and dance moves.
- Canoe Slalom and Sprint: In slalom, athletes navigate a white water course, while in sprint, they race over calm water distances of 200m, 500m, or 1000m.
- Cycling: The Olympics feature several cycling disciplines including BMX freestyle and racing, mountain biking, road cycling, and track cycling, each testing different skills and endurance..
- Equestrian: This sport includes dressage, eventing, and jumping. It’s unique as it involves a human-animal partnership, requiring harmony between horse and rider.
- Fencing: A sport of combat with three disciplines—foil, épée, and sabre—each with its own rules and target areas.
- Football: Football is is a team sport played between two teams of eleven players where the objective is to score goals by getting the ball into the opposing team’s net . It is also one of the few sports at the Games where the tournament starts before the opening ceremony due to the number of matches;
- Golf: Returning to the Olympics in 2016 after a long hiatus, golf involves players competing over 72 holes in a stroke play format.
- Gymnastics (Artistic, Rhythmic and Trampolining) : Gymnastics is a sport that involves performing exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, balance, and grace.
- Handball: A team sport where players aim to throw a ball into the opponent’s goal, combining elements of soccer and basketball.
- Hockey: Field hockey features teams of eleven players each, aiming to score by hitting a ball into the opposing team’s goal with curved sticks.
- Judo: A martial art focused on throws and grappling, judo emphasizes technique and leverage.
- Modern Pentathlon: A multi-discipline event that includes fencing, swimming, equestrian show jumping, pistol shooting, and cross-country running.
- Rowing: Athletes race boats on water, using oars to propel themselves over various distances, in singles, doubles, and team events.
- Rugby Sevens: A faster-paced variant of rugby union with seven players per team, known for its speed and high scoring.
- Sailing: This sport tests sailors’ skills in manoeuvring boats using wind power across various classes and formats.
- Shooting: Competitors use rifles and pistols to hit targets at set distances, testing precision and control.
- Skateboarding: A street sport that involves tricks and jumps, judged on difficulty and execution.
- Sport Climbing: This new addition involves climbing a fixed route on a vertical wall, testing speed, strength, and strategy.
- Surfing: Athletes ride waves on surfboards, judged on their skill, style, and manoeuvre execution.
- Table Tennis: A fast-paced sport where players use paddles to hit a lightweight ball across a table divided by a net.
- Taekwondo: A Korean martial art focusing on head-height kicks, jumping and spinning kicks, and fast kicking techniques.
- Tennis: A racket sport with singles and doubles events, played on different surfaces like clay, grass, and hard courts.
- Track & Field: Also known as athletics, encompasses a variety of sports events involving running, jumping, throwing, and walking
- Triathlon: A multi-discipline event that includes swimming, cycling, and running, testing endurance and versatility.
- Volleyball: A team sport where players aim to ground the ball on the opponent’s court, played both indoors and on the beach.
- Weightlifting: Athletes compete in lifting the heaviest weights in two styles: snatch, and clean and jerk.
- Wrestling: A combat sport with two disciplines—freestyle and Greco-Roman—where athletes aim to pin their opponents or score points through holds and maneuvers.
Changes in Olympic sport
Since the turn of the millennium, the Olympic Games have seen significant evolution in their sports program. Major shifts include the addition and removal of sports like baseball and softball, which returned for Tokyo 2020 after being dropped post-2008. Golf and rugby sevens rejoined in 2016, marking their comeback after long absences.
The IOC’s approach shifted from a fixed number of sports to considering total events, allowing for flexibility in including new disciplines like skateboarding and surfing. Women’s participation expanded with additions such as boxing and ski jumping, nearly achieving gender parity across disciplines. This year, breaking is set to make it debut .
