A year ago, Paris 2024 launched its volunteer recruitment campaign for the Olympic Games. A (great) successful campaign since more than 300,000 candidates – from nearly 190 different countries – responded to the call from the Games Organizing Committee (COJO), for a total of 45,000 profiles selected. And this Saturday, March 23, the lucky ones will be able to meet at a convention organized at Paris La Défense Arena in Nanterre, the future competition site for swimming, para-swimming and even water polo finals. A great opportunity for them to “start looking behind the scenes of the biggest sporting event in the world and on this occasion they will discover their uniform designed by Decathlon, official partner of the Paris 2024 Games.”
Several figures emerge from these 45,000 volunteers, with around 30,000 affected by the Olympic Games from July 26 to August 11 and 15,000 by the Paralympic Games from August 28 to September 8 (around 7,500 will cover the two competitions in identical or different roles). One of which is the pride of the OCOG: respect for gender parity within this large contingent, around a third of whom come from the sports movement. Another satisfaction is that the 101 French departments are represented among these 45,000 volunteers, and 20% of them come from abroad, which demonstrates the attractiveness of Paris. For comparison, before the health crisis and the postponement of the Games for a year, Tokyo 2020 was set to have only 5% of volunteers from outside Japan.
Same harmonious distribution at the level of the age pyramid with around 30% of volunteers being under 25 years old, and 10% being in their sixties or over, some having even reached the very respectable bar of 90 years old. And to finish with the percentages, a little more than 5% of volunteers have a disability, which also reflects Paris 2024’s desire to organize the Games as inclusively as possible. This Saturday will therefore mark the “real” start of their experience for them who will be “the first faces of the Games, the guarantors of their success by being present everywhere, from the stadiums to the stations via the airports or the Olympic village” as recalled Alexandre Morenon-Condé, the Games-time workshop director of the Games.
Throughout the day, the volunteers present will have the opportunity to discuss under the aegis of Tony Estanguet, but also the coach of the French handball team, reigning Olympic champion, Guillaume Gille, and the newly starred chef Manon Fleury. (and former high-level saber fencer), mental trainer and obstacle course specialist Anouk Garnier and street artist Jo Di Bona. A day which will also allow them to learn about their upcoming schedule, with a first general training module coming in April, before a more specific one for their mission in June. Without forgetting from the month of May the presentation of their accreditation and their famous outfit. Enough to gently increase the pressure between now and the start of the Games. But also their excitement and their motivation to make these Games a great success. In which they will be major players.
