04 April 2024 - Sport and the Olympic Games Paris 2024 this summer can play a unique and powerful role in uniting the world in peaceful competition and in building more inclusive societies. This is being highlighted by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) ahead of the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace (IDSDP) on 6 April. In less than four months, the Olympic Games Paris 2024 are set to bring together 10,500 athletes from 200+ National Olympic Committees and the IOC Refugee Olympic Team.
“At the Olympic Games, the athletes set aside all the differences that divide the world,” said IOC President Thomas Bach. “They compete fiercely against each other, while living peacefully together under one roof in the Olympic Village. This makes the Olympic Games such a powerful symbol of peace.”
He continued: “Sport contributes to building a more peaceful, healthier, more equal and more sustainable world for everyone – 365 days a year, as demonstrated by Paris 2024.” This is one of the reasons why the United Nations (UN) has declared sport as an important enabler for the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
“By living up to the promise of Games wide open and mobilising all those involved in sport in France and beyond, Paris 2024’s vision has already come to fruition, even before the Games begin. The many initiatives and activities to promote exercise, education, inclusion, equality and a better environment are already having a tangible impact,” the IOC President added.
Paris 2024 strong social legacy
Through the “Impact 2024” programme, the Olympic Games Paris 2024 are already providing tangible social legacies to all layers of French society, benefitting millions of people, businesses and communities throughout the country.
Here are some key achievements:
- Paris 2024 successfully advocated for a daily 30-minute exercise period in French primary schools, an initiative which has been rolled out nationally in all 36,800 schools, aiming to reach 4.2 million pupils nationwide.
- More than 8,700 schools and higher education establishments have been awarded the “Génération 2024” label, a seal recognising their collaboration with local sports clubs and local governments to support the development of sports practice.
- The “Terre de Jeux 2024” label has been awarded to over 4,700 local and regional authorities across France that are committed to developing measures to promote sport and the Games with local residents. It has inspired more than 50,000 events and the construction or renovation of sports facilities.
- The “Bouger Plus” programme has benefitted over 600,000 people. It aims to get everyone in France moving and prioritises schoolchildren, women, people with disabilities, senior citizens and groups who tend to be less active or socially excluded.
- 3 million young people have already taken part in the Olympic and Paralympic Weeks. The 2024 edition is currently ongoing (2-6 April).
- Through the 2024 Endowment Fund created in 2019, Paris 2024 and its co-financers have also supported more than 1,100 social projects to the tune of EUR 47.8 million for 4.5 million beneficiaries to encourage the practice of sport by women and people with disabilities, but also to promote the role of sport in education, equality, inclusion and professional integration.
Extending Paris 2024 legacy beyond French borders
In 2021, Paris 2024 also launched Impact 2024 International, a collaboration with the French Development Agency (AFD) aiming to provide funding and technical support to projects that use sport to address issues such as health, well-being, education, inclusion and equality in Africa.
Since its launch, the programme has supported 45 initiatives across 19 African nations, committing a total of EUR 1.4 million and benefiting almost 80,000 people.
Building on this success, the IOC recently signed a partnership with AFD and Paris 2024 with the objective of expanding this legacy beyond the Olympic Games.
Through this partnership, the IOC will ensure continued funding for the most innovative and impactful projects currently supported by Paris 2024 and AFD in Africa. The IOC’s investment, over an 18-month period, aims to continue to build peaceful and inclusive societies through sport across the African continent, with a specific focus on supporting measures that will enhance the sustainability and scale of initiatives seeded through Impact 2024 International.
To support the delivery of this initiative, the IOC is working with Sport Impact, an association which provides a community of experts in the area of sport for sustainable development.
The selection process for the projects to be additionally funded will be opening soon, with the submission deadline of 17 May 2024. The eligibility criteria and the information about the process will be available on the Sport en Commun platform from 8 April.
Innovative partnerships driven by Olympism365
This extension of the Paris social legacy programme has been driven by the IOC’s Olympism365 strategy, which brings together organisations and networks across numerous sectors to advance the contribution of sport and Olympism365 days a year. The strategy has five priority areas: health and active communities; more equitable and inclusive communities; peace and safer communities; education and livelihoods; and innovation for scale and sustainability, which includes maximising the positive social impact of esports and urban sport.
As the IOC continues to mark IDSDP throughout April, you can follow more stories about the innovative ways the Olympic Movement contributes to building peaceful and inclusive societies through sport on IOC.org.
For regular updates on the activities and initiatives that the IOC is supporting through Olympism365, you can also subscribe to the new Advancing Olympism365 newsletter by clicking here. The first edition comes out on 30 April.
About IDSDP
Creating a historical link to the first modern Olympic Games, which began 128 years ago on 6 April 1896, the UN General Assembly declared in 2013 that 6 April would be the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace, which has now been celebrated each year since 2014. The IDSDP is an annual celebration of the power of sport to drive social change and community development, and to foster peace and understanding.
