10 Fun Facts About Paris 2024 and Gymnastics in Paris

Inside Gymnastics will be on the scene in Paris for the XXXIII Olympiad bringing you all of the action from the Games! Make sure you’re following our social media pages (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram & Threads) for all the latest and greatest in what promises to be the most epic and most-watched Olympic Games ever.

• Dates: July 27 – August 5
• Venue: Bercy Arena
• TV channels: NBC, USA Network, E!
• Streaming: Peacock, NBCOlympics.com, NBC.com, NBC app, NBC Olympics app

TV Broadcasts + Streaming Info

By Megan Roth

With the Opening Ceremony just hours away (!!!) and gymnastics in Paris now just one day away, here are 5 facts about gymnastics in Paris and 5 fun facts about the Paris Olympics as a whole to get you ready for the Games!

Plus, get you watch party snack ready! Our suggestions here!

Gymnastics in Paris

1) Returning Olympians. 79 of the 191 artistic gymnasts competing in Paris are returning Olympians – 47 in MAG and 32 in WAG. Max Whitlock (Great Britain), Andreas Toba (Germany), Igor Radivilov (Ukraine), Artur Davtyan (Armenia), and Ellie Black (Canada) will become four-time Olympians in Paris. Becky Downie (Great Britain) and Jade Barbosa (Brazil) competed at the 2008 Beijing Olympics 16 years ago!

2) Youngest and oldest teams. With an average age of 17.2, Team Romania will be the youngest Women’s team and Team USA (22.2) will be the youngest Men’s team in Paris. Team Netherlands (27.6) and Teams China and Spain (27) will be the oldest teams in Paris. The US women’s team is the oldest since 1952.

3) NCAA athletes in Paris. 22 artistic gymnasts competing in Paris are current or former NCAA athletes – 13 women and 9 men. Read more about the NCAA gymnasts competing in Paris here!

4) First-year seniors making an impact. Six first-year senior women’s gymnasts will compete in Paris – Hezly Rivera (USA), Abigail Martin (Great Britain), Zhang Yihan (China), Ming Gherardi van Eijken (France), Nakamura Haruka (Japan), and Helen Kevric (Germany). Angel Barajas (Colombia) will be the only first-year MAG senior in Paris. 

5) Age breakdowns. Jade Barbosa (33) and Hezly Rivera (16) are the oldest and youngest WAG gymnasts competing in Paris. Vahagn Davtyan (Armenia, 35) and Angel Barajas (17) are the oldest and youngest MAG athletes competing in Paris. In MAG, there will be more than three times the number of gymnasts in their 30s than gymnasts in their teens. In WAG, 62.1% of gymnasts competing in Paris are over the age of 20. 

Paris 2024

1) The official mascot of the Paris Olympics is a hat. Yes, a hat. Previous Olympic mascots have been anything from pandas to bears to tigers, but in Paris, the official mascot is the Olympic Phryge, a traditional hat that was once worn by French revolutionaries. Pronounced “freege,” these hats have shown up on French coins and stamps and are referred to as a symbol of freedom.

2) Olympic medals will contain iron once part of the Eiffel Tower. This year’s Olympic medals include the most iconic part of Paris. Each Olympic medal will be infused with iron from the original Eiffel Tower which was completed in 1889. The pieces of iron were cut from parts of the tower that were saved from renovations over the years.

3) New Sports! Breaking, sport climbing, skateboarding, and surfing will all be featured for the first time, and 3×3 basketball will return. The surfing events will be held in Tahiti, French Polynesia, which is the farthest away from Paris that any Olympic competition has ever been held. Follow Inside Dance for all coverage of breaking!

4) Paris will join London as the only cities to host the Olympics three times. The Games were in Paris in 1900, 1924 and now in 2024, while London hosted the Games in 1908, 1948 and 2012.

5) The opening ceremony will take place along the Seine River. Instead of walking in a stadium, athletes will sail along the river, breaking tradition for the first time ever.

For more:

Lilia Cosman and Team Romania Make the Most of Paris

Bercy Is Waiting for Biles

Guided By Faith and Fortitude, Brody Malone Makes it to Paris

Dualing Dreams! Dual Citizenship Fulfills Long-Awaited Olympic Dreams

Paris-Bound for Colombia, Luisa Blanco’s Dream Is More Than She Ever Imagined

USA,Biles, and Japan Headline Team Competition in Paris

5 Routines to Watch in Paris!

Sunique! 2020 Olympic Champion Suni Lee Readies for Paris

Bring on Brazil! Andrade and Team Brazil eye gold

All That Glitters – GK Elite and Team USA Unveil Olympic Leotards

2024 Olympics Schedule + How to Watch

For Paul Juda, the title of ‘Olympian’ is everything

Simone Biles Leads Team USA Redemption Tour

Frederick Richard and Brody Malone Lead Team USA Men

The Queen Is In the Building

Carly Patterson’s New Role with Team USA

Road to Paris Gets Real – Olympic Draw

5 Key Takeaways from Winter Cup

Photo credits: Ricardo Bufolin for Inside Gymnastics

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