Paris is about to host its third summer Olympics. While we don’t yet know what the legacy of this year’s games will be, let’s take the opportunity to reflect on the city’s previous Olympics of 1900 and 1924 – the first of which nearly ended the modern Olympic movement, whereas the second set it alight.
The disaster of Paris 1900
The 1900 Paris Olympics was negatively impacted by the decision to link the games with the World Fair, held in Paris at the same time. The committee of the much larger and more popular fair was given control of organising everything, despite its minimal knowledge of sport. The organisers saw the Olympics as far less important than the fair’s exhibits, focused on fashion and new technologies such as escalators and audio recorders.
