Paris concluded its summer with a spectacular Champions’ Parade, marking the end of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The celebration featured a grand march down the Champs-Élysées, a medal ceremony led by President Emmanuel Macron, and an open-air concert that drew tens of thousands of spectators, athletes and volunteers.
All participants paraded from the Champs-Élysées to the Arc de Triomphe. At the monument, President Macron awarded the French Olympic and Paralympic medalists with the prestigious Légion d’Honneur. President Macron later tweeted, “Pride of a Nation,” along with a photo of the athletes on stage. France finished 5th place in the Olympic medal count with 16 golds and 64 medals total. A few weeks later, the home national earned an 8th finish on the overall medal table in the Paralympics with 19 golds and 75 medals sum.
The parade garnered immense excitement across France, with all 70,000 available tickets for the event being sold out within an hour. Among the 180 athletes present were notable figures from the 2024 Games, including swimmer Léon Marchand, judoka Teddy Riner and fencer Manon Apithy-Brunet. The event was punctuated by a breathtaking flyover from the Patrouille de France aerobatics team, painting the sky with the French flag’s colours. The night concluded with a vibrant concert at the Arc de Triomphe, where music and dancing continued until midnight. It was the final dance from Paris 2024.
Cover Image: Yann Caradec
Author: Szandra Szogedi