The most awaited athletic event in the world, the 2024 Summer Olympics, finally kicked underway in Paris today. The event, which took place on a lively Friday night, presented Paris in all its beauty and set the stage for what looks to be an incredible Olympic Games. Renowned performer Celine Dion had a breath taking performance that stole the show at the celebration.
The athletes broke with convention by skipping the traditional parade through the stadium.
Rather, they opted to sail along the Seine River on exquisitely decorated boats that gracefully meandered through the lovely scenery of Paris. These athletes will compete in various sports on behalf of their countries. However, which sports were part of the original ancient Olympics? Which games are currently included in this year’s Olympics and which aren’t. Find here.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) organised the first ancient Summer Olympics, which took place in Athens, Greece, in 1896. The French nobleman Pierre de Coubertin established the committee, and the games were held from April 6–15, 1896. About 241 athletes—all of whom were men—from fourteen different countries competed in the game at that time. The competitors participated in 43 different games, which included boxing, sprinting, long jump, shot put, javelin, and equestrian competitions. The spirit of competition and the evolution of sports have since shaped the modern Olympics into the grand event we see in 2024.
List of sports included in the Paris Olympics 2024
S.No.
| Name of the Sport
|
1
| Archery
|
2
| Athletics
|
3
| Badminton
|
4
| Basketball 3x3
|
5
| Beach Volleyball
|
6
| Boxing
|
7
| Break dancing
|
8
| Canoe Slalom
|
9
| Canoe Sprint
|
10
| BMX Cycling
|
11
| Diving
|
12
| Equestrian
|
13
| Fencing
|
14
| Football
|
15
| Golf
|
16
| Gymnastics
|
17
| Handball
|
18
| Hockey
|
19
| Judo
|
20
| Modern Pentathlon
|
21
| Rowing
|
22
| Rugby Sevens
|
23
| Sailing
|
24
| Shooting
|
25
| Skateboarding
|
26
| Sport Climbing
|
27
| Surfing
|
28
| Swimming
|
29
| Table Tennis
|
30
| Taekwondo
|
31
| Tennis
|
32
| Triathlon
|
33
| Volleyball
|
34
| Weightlifting
|
35
| Wrestling
|
Sports included in Olympics
ArcheryThere are five medal events in the current Olympic archery competition: mixed team recurve, which is making a comeback following its debut in Tokyo, men's individual, women's individual, men's team, and women's team. The archer is 70 metres away from the target in all cases.
Athletics Along with cycling, fencing, gymnastics, and swimming, athletics is one of the five sports that have been competed in at every summer Olympic Games since 1896. Twelve men's track and field events—the 100-, 400-, 800-, 1,500-, 110-meter hurdles, marathon, high jump, pole vault, long jump, triple leap, shot put and discus throw—have been competed in at all the Games. Four women's events—the 100-meter sprint, the 4 x 100-meter relay, the high jump, and the discus throw—have been competed in at every Olympic Games.
BadmintonA Mixed Doubles event was added to the Olympic Games for the first time in 1996 in Atlanta. Badminton made its Olympic debut as a full-medal sport at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, Spain.
Basketball 3x3 and 5x53x3 basketball, sometimes referred to as streetball or street basketball, is a casual basketball variant that is played all over the world. The 2010 Youth Olympic Games marked the sport's debut on the world scene. Four basketball gold medals will be awarded, with competitions for men and women to compete in 5x5 basketball and men and women to compete in 3x3 basketball.
The Pierre Mauroy Stadium in Lille will host the 5x5 basketball games, while the Accor Arena (Paris-Bercy) in Paris will host the championship game. The Place de la Concorde, a sizable public square in Paris, will host the 3x3 games.
Beach VolleyballBeach volleyball became an official event in 1996. Although There are usually three stages to the beach volleyball competition at the Olympics: qualifying, knockout, and medal rounds.
Teams are split up into groups for the preliminary stage, and each group competes in a round-robin manner. A best-of-three set format is used for beach volleyball matches, with the first two sets going to 21 points apiece and a possible third set going to 15 points. Each group's top teams move on to the knockout round.
BoxingSince boxing debuted in 1904, every Summer Olympic Games has included the sport, with the exception of Stockholm in 1912 when it was outlawed by Swedish legislation. 2012 saw the debut of women's boxing at the London Games. While female boxing matches last four rounds of two minutes, male boxing matches last three rounds.
BreakdancingBreakdancing is one of four sports (sport climbing, skateboarding, and surfing) that would be included in the Olympic Games schedule for 2024 in Paris. Breakdancing in Paris 2024 will feature head-to-head "battles" with 16 athletes in each gender.
Canoe Slalom The slalom kayak cross for men and women is a brand-new competition in 2024.Paddling a decked canoe or kayak, competitors attempt to complete a course of hanging gates on river rapids in the shortest amount of time.
Canoe SprintAthletes race on flat waters in lanes, in canoes (1 or 2 paddlers) and Kayaks (1,2 or 4 paddles).
BMX Cycling (Freestyle, racing, mountain bike, road and track)
There are events for both men and women in the BMX cycling category of the Summer Olympics. Individual BMX racing events for men and women were introduced to the Beijing 2008 Olympic program.
In 2020, BMX freestyle events were introduced to the Olympic Games for both men and women. Throughout a 60-second run, the competitors showcased their abilities and inventiveness by utilising ramps and other obstacles in a "park course" competition.
DivingThe Olympic diving program currently consists of multiple events: individual 3m springboard, 10m platform, and synchronised events (all for men and women). Competitors can make their own dives or select from a list of dives that have been evaluated based on difficulty. Approach, takeoff, elevation, movement execution, and entry into the water all result in points.
EquestrianAt the moment, there are three horse sports offered at the Olympics: eventing, dressage, and jumping. In 1900, show jumping was added to the Olympic Games. In 1912, three-day eventing and dressage were established.
FencingThe foil, épée, and sabre are the three forms of weapons used in Olympic fencing today. There are twelve fencing competitions at the Olympics right now. For both men and women, there are six medal events.
Football The first team sport to be added to the Olympics was football. It made its Olympic debut at the 1900 Paris Olympics. In 1996, a women's Olympic football competition was introduced to the schedule. The women's teams are not limited by age, however the men's teams can only have three over-age players, and they can only have under-23 players on their rosters.
GolfGolf and rugby were the two sports chosen by the IOC in August 2009 as new additions to the program for 2016. The Olympic competition for 2024 in Paris will be the same as it was in previous editions. The competition is a 72-hole individual stroke play match. For any medal ties, a three-hole playoff is utilised.
GymnasticsGymnastics is a sport that has three distinct competitions in the Olympics. They are as follows:
Athletes in ‘artistic gymnastics’ compete in both solo and team events using various equipment and floor routines.
Participants in ‘rhythmic gymnastics’ execute choreographed routines using handheld equipment.
Trampoline: This sport entails competitors performing acrobatic manoeuvres like somersaults and twists in mid air while jumping on a trampoline up to eight metres in the air. Points are given for flight duration, difficulty, and execution.
HandballIn 1936, handball made its debut at the Olympic Games in Berlin (see Field Handball 1936). Twelve teams, twelve men's and twelve women's, compete in two groups in a round robin format in Paris before moving on to knockout rounds. For men, this format hasn't changed since 2000, while for women, it hasn't changed since 2008.
HockeyThe sport of hockey was first presented at the London Olympic Games for men in 1908. It was eliminated from the Olympics following the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris following the founding of the International Hockey Federation (FIH) in 1928. In 1980, the women's competition was added to the schedule. Twenty-four teams competed in the men's and women's event (twelve for each gender).
JudoMen's judo was first introduced to the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 1964. In 1992, it was recognised as an official sport. There are fourteen body weight divisions with seven male and seven female classes. In addition, there is a mixed team competition with six athletes competing in three weight classes each gender.
Modern Pantheon Since the Stockholm Games in 1912, modern pentathlon has been a part of the Olympic program. The current Olympic movement was started by the French baron Pierre de Coubertin, who invented the sport. It consists of five sports that were formerly performed over two days, but more recently, it has only been held on one day. The Modern Pentathlon will remain unchanged from its previous iteration (with modifications planned for 2028).
RowingOne of the staple competitions in the Olympics is rowing. Since 1900, it has been a part of the Olympic program. The first women's competitions were held at the Montreal Games in 1976. Every race takes place on a 2000 m (1.24 km) course. There are a total 14 rowing events in the 2024 Olympics.
Rugby sevens The faster-paced, more thrilling variation of rugby known as Rugby 7s is played at the Olympics, with competitions for men and women. In 2016, rugby was introduced to the Olympic schedule. There will be twenty-four teams competing for the medals—twelve for the men and women. The rugby sevens contests will begin two days ahead of the opening ceremony for the first time.
SailingSince the inaugural Olympic Games, sailing has been a featured sport (although it was referred to as yachting until 2000). The sailing program has been expanded to include a kiteboarding event for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. There is now only one 470 mixed event, as opposed to the men's and women's 470 classes.
Sailing Events (Paris 2024)Men'sSingle-handed Dinghy- ILCA 7
Skiff event - 49erFX
Windsurfing - IQFoil
Kiteboarding - Formula Kite
Women'sSingle-handed Dinghy- ILCA 6
Skiff event - 49erFX
Windsurfing - IQFoil
Kiteboarding - Formula Kite
Both men and womenDouble-handed Dinghy - 470
Foiling Catamaran - Nacra 17
ShootingShooting has only twice been excluded from the Olympic schedule: in 1928 and 1904. The Olympic Games included women's shooting competitions for the first time in 1984. The mixed team skeet competition has taken the place of the mixed team trap competition in 2020. Additionally, there are now 340 shooters competing instead of the previous number of 360.
SkateboardingThe International Olympic Committee (IOC) took a vote in 2009 over the inclusion of roller sports in the 2016 Olympic schedule. Skateboarding was a strong competitor, but rugby and golf were chosen instead. Roller sports were included on the list of eight sports for the Tokyo Olympics in 2020 in 2013. Skateboarding and inline speed skating were included in the 2015 shortlist; however, only events involving street and park skating were allowed.
Sport ClimbingThree disciplines comprise the Olympic climbing competition: bouldering, lead climbing, and speed climbing. A mixed speed, bouldering, and lead climbing competition was added for Tokyo 2020. The speed event was split off from the lead and bouldering events in Paris 2024, bringing the total number of medal events and competitors up to 68. Male and female competitors can compete for gold medals in the combined bouldering and lead event.
SurfingTogether with four other new sports, surfing was eventually added to the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games schedule after years of fighting for inclusion. It will be back on schedule in 2024, but this time held in French Tahiti.
SwimmingThere are 35 swimming events in the pool for the 2024 Games in Paris, including the 4 × 100m mixed medley relay and 17 events for men and women. The 10km open-water swimming marathon for men and women is the other swimming competition at the Olympics.
Table TennisSince 1988, table tennis has been a feature of the Summer Olympic Games. Both men's and women's singles and pairs competitions are held. Chinese competitors have dominated the table tennis medals throughout Olympic history. Five things happen. Men's and women's teams, mixed doubles, and men's and women's singles are all open to competitors.
TaekwondoOne of the two Asian martial arts that are part of the Olympic program is Taekwondo; the other is Judo. Since its debut as an official Olympic sport in the 2000 Games, taekwondo has been a part of the athletic schedule.
TennisIn addition to the men's and women's singles and doubles competitions, there has been a mixed doubles event since London 2012. Tennis has five medal events: a mixed doubles competition in addition to men's and women's singles and doubles competitions. Roland-Garros will host the clay-court competition.
TriathlonThe first triathlon competition took place during the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. While there are differences in the competition durations used in triathlons across the globe, the Olympic distances consist of a 1.5-kilometer swim, a 40-kilometre cycle, and a 10-kilometre run. Three triathlon competitions are held in the Olympics: a mixed relay competition (a new event in 2020), a competition for men and women. Every competition has just one race with no heats for all participants.
VolleyballBeach volleyball and indoor volleyball are the two types of volleyball played at the Olympics. Since 1964, it has been a recognised sport at the Olympics. In 1996, beach volleyball made its formal debut.
WeightliftingAthletes are given three chances to complete each action in the current competition format: the "snatch" and the "clean and jerk." The winners are determined by adding together the best performances in each lift. There are ten categories instead of fourteen (two fewer for men and women) than there were in Tokyo.
Male categories: 61 kg,73 kg, 89 kg, 102 kg and +102kg
Female categories: 49 kg, 59 kg, 71 kg, 81 kg and +81 kg
WrestlingIn addition to being a competition in the ancient Olympic Games, wrestling debuted in the 1896 Summer Olympics. Wrestling has been a part of every Olympic program since these original Games, 1900 being the exception.
Games excluded from the Paris Olympics 2024
KarateGiven that boxing, judo, taekwondo, fencing, and wrestling are already among the combat sports offered at the Olympics, it was thought that Karate would have a difficult time getting accepted.
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