The organizing committee of Paris 2024 has committed to making it the green Games in Olympic history, aiming to halve the carbon footprint compared to London 2012 and Rio 2016. London 2012 had an estimated carbon footprint of 3.3 million tonnes, while Rio 2016 had a footprint of 3.6 million tonnes of carbon. The 2024 Games will take place in the same city where world leaders met in 2015 to agree on measures to limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C, drawing significant attention to sustainability efforts.
Initiatives announced by Paris 2024 include tables made from shuttlecocks and plant-based menus to help achieve their environmental targets. In an exclusive interview, Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), told the media that sustainability is an issue “very close” to his heart. Bach emphasized that climate change is an “extremely serious threat, not only for sport, but for all our lives,” and noted the IOC’s commitment to reducing its footprint through Olympic agenda reforms.
Before London 2012, six new stadiums were constructed, while Rio built 10 permanent sites and seven temporary ones. For Paris 2024, only two of the 35 venues will be new builds: an aquatics center and an arena for badminton and rhythmic gymnastics, both constructed using “low-carbon methods.” The aquatic center will feature seats made from “recycled local plastic waste” and extensive use of wood.
The beds in the athletes’ village at Tokyo 2020 were made from recycled cardboard, famously rumored to prevent intimacy among athletes. Although this claim was debunked, the same manufacturer is providing beds for Paris 2024. In the athletes’ area, there will also be “coffee tables made from recycled shuttlecocks, poufs from parachute canvas, and chairs from recycled bottle tops.”
The organizing committee promises to double the proportion of plant-based ingredients compared to London 2012 and Rio 2016 and to source 80% of ingredients from “local agriculture production” to reduce transport. Place de la Concorde, hosting urban sports, will exclusively serve vegetarian food, a significant shift in a city known for beef bourguignon and steak tartare.
Paris 2024 plans to connect stadiums to the public electricity network, avoiding the diesel generators used in past Games. The Commission for a Sustainable London 2012 reported that the Olympic Broadcasting Service (OBS) unnecessarily used generators due to overestimating energy needs, burning four million liters of diesel just for electricity.
A 60km cycling network will link all Olympic venues, 30km of which has been built in preparation for the Games. University of Portsmouth scientists warned of extreme heat’s effects on athletes, noting that July and August temperatures have risen by 2.4°C and 2.7°C respectively since the 1924 Olympics in France. Although the Olympic village was initially designed without air conditioning, 2,500 temporary cooling units will now be installed due to heat concerns.
The suitability of the River Seine for triathlon and open water swimming was questioned after failing water quality tests, but Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo and other committee members swam in the river to demonstrate its safety.
Spectator travel poses the greatest challenge to Paris’ environmental targets, potentially accounting for 80% of event emissions. While London 2012 aimed to sell 75% of tickets to UK fans, Paris 2024 tickets were sold centrally to fans worldwide, likely increasing international travel.
In 2023, France banned short-haul flights where train alternatives exist. Coca-Cola, a long-standing Olympic partner, was named the world’s leading plastic polluter by the NGO Break Free From Plastic. Toyota will provide 500 hydrogen-fuel cell vehicles with zero tailpipe emissions for the Games, although some scientists argue that hydrogen vehicles require three times more electricity than battery electric vehicles.
Bach told the media that the use of EV, hybrid, and hydrogen-powered vehicles at Paris 2024 sends a “very strong signal” regarding footprint reduction. Coca-Cola will use “a beverage fountain” to reduce plastic use by 50%, serving beverages in reusable plastic packaging. However, French newspaper Le Monde reported that 40% of drinks will still be in single-use plastic bottles. Over 100 athletes have signed an open letter urging Coca-Cola and Pepsi to stop selling single-use plastic bottles and to promote reusable products.
