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PARIS

MAP: Where to find the free fan zones in Paris for the 2024 Olympics

The city of Paris has released plans for free fan zones, which are intended to allow everyone in the city to enjoy and participate in the celebration of the 2024 Olympic Games.

MAP: Where to find the free fan zones in Paris for the 2024 Olympics
The entrance of the headquarters of the Paris 2024 Olympics (Cojo) headquarters (Photo by JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP)

If you were unable to get tickets for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, there will still be plenty of free opportunities to take part in the festivities.

The Paris deputy mayor in charge of sport, Pierre Rabadan, has announced that the city will offer 23 fan zones, with at least one in each of the city’s arrondissements (excluding the 7th, where the arrondissement mayor didn’t want one). 

“Our goal is to make the event accessible to everyone, including those who did not get tickets to watch the competitions in person”, he told Le Parisien

Graphic: Paris Olympic Organising Committee and Paris Town Hall

Several emblematic sites across the city will be turned into fan zones, including the Hôtel de Ville in the 4th arrondissement and the Quartier Jeunes just beside the Louvre Museum. 

The annual Paris Plages will go ahead during the summer of 2024 as well, with the banks of the Seine and the Bassin de la Villette decorated for the Olympics and transformed into free fan zones. 

READ MORE: Hotels, tickets and scams: What to know about visiting Paris for the 2024 Olympics

Two of the sites – Trocadero and Parc de la Villette – will be run by the Olympic Organising Committe and the Club France (respectively). At Trocadero, the Champions Park will offer daily events for medallists to meet the public and the ‘Club France’ zone in the north of the city will be the centre for cheering on Team France and meeting French athletes.

Many of the remaining fan zones across the city will be held in local town halls or community centres, with some hosting special themes and offering other cultural activities aside from streaming the Games. 

For instance, the 13th arrondissement will aim their programming toward families with children, while the mayor of the 15th arrondissement, Philippe Goujon, told Le Parisien they hoped to add games, like table tennis, into the mix. 

“These venues will be open to all, and entirely free of charge. The average capacity will be around 500 people at any one time”, Rabadan said.

It is possible that other sites will be able to accompany larger crowds, but this will be determined at a later date by local law enforcement.

The fan zones will likely open July 25th or 26th (right before the Opening Ceremony) but this has not been confirmed yet. They are set to remain open until the end of the Paralympic Games. 

Rabadan said that the city will make available a programme with details for each site in September. 

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PARIS

Eiffel Tower to hike ticket prices by 20 percent from June

Paris city hall on Friday voted to increase the Eiffel Tower adult admission price by 20 percent from next month to help pay for urgent renovation work.

Eiffel Tower to hike ticket prices by 20 percent from June

Visitors currently pay €29.40 ($31.90) for a ride by lift to the top of the Eiffel tower, a price tag that is set to rise to 35.30 euros on June 17.

The Paris city council also backed a recapitalisation for Eiffel Tower operator SETE, and lowered the annual fee it charges the operator for running one of the world’s most famous monuments.

Lower visitor numbers during the Covid pandemic combined with spiralling renovation costs have pushed SETE deep into deficit.

Staff at the Eiffel Tower went on strike earlier this year, protesting against what unions said was insufficient investment.

The Eiffel Tower booked a shortfall of around 120 million euros during the Covid pandemic in 2020 and 2021.

Unions argued that previous recapitalisation of 60 million euros was insufficient given the need for major maintenance work, including a fresh paint job.

The masterpiece by architect Gustave Eiffel has been repainted 19 times since it was built for the 1889 World Fair.

Eiffel recommended at the time that it should be painted every seven years to keep inevitable rust at bay.

But the 300-metre (985-feet) iron structure — 330 metres tall when the high-frequency antenna at the top is included — has not been given a full paint job since 2010.

Visitor numbers recovered to nearly six million last year, having dropped to 1.5 million in 2020 because of Covid restrictions.

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