Every four years, when the summer Olympics and Paralympics come round, a parade of architectural baubles – stadiums, velodromes, symbolic whatnots such as London 2012’s ArcelorMittal Orbit – is offered to the more or less fascinated gaze of the world. Each time, the question of legacy arises. What use will these structures have when their few weeks of glory is over? Answers run from the rotting facilities left by Athens in 2004 to the compromise whereby London’s Olympic stadium became the home of West Ham United football club.
Paris, the host city in 2024, promises to be different. Most of the events will be held in existing structures such as the Stade de France, originally built for the 1998 football World Cup, or in temporary venues in the heart of the city. Beach volleyball and blind football will take place in front of the Eiffel Tower, BMX freestyle and skateboarding in the Place de la Concorde. The opening ceremony will be a 6km-long river parade through what the official blurb calls the “impressive playing field the athletes will make their own as soon as it ends, the City of Light itself”.
