Paris 2024 Games: Grand Palais, a long Olympic history

The Grand Palais will experience the thrill of the Olympics for the second time in its rich history at the Paris 2024 Games. From the bygone art competitions in 1924 to fencing and taekwondo (Olympic and Paralympic) in 2024, the site has forged a fine sporting history.

With its two million visitors a year, the Grand Palais was built in Paris in 1897 to host the Universal Exhibition scheduled for spring 1900. A "monument consecrated by the Republic to the glory of French art", its purpose was to host the capital's major artistic events. In the twentieth century, it was the venue for a succession of art, technical and commercial salons, as well as other events dedicated to the sciences and the arts, all of which took advantage of this 75,000 m² showcase. Classified as a historic monument in 2000, the site has been undergoing a major renovation since 2021. The Nave and adjoining galleries will be ready for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. You will have to wait until spring 2025 to be able to enjoy the rest of the monument.

When art and sport meet

From 1900 to 2024, the artistic vocation of the Grand Palais made room for sport. The high point was the Olympic experience of 1924, when works from the art and sport competitions (events that are no longer on the programme of the current Games) were exhibited.

But how were these competitions included in the 1924 Paris Games? To answer this question, we need to go back a little further in time and look at Pierre de Coubertin, the father of the modern Olympic Games, who throughout his career sought to combine the arts and sport in order to preserve the spirit of the Games as they were held in ancient Greece. Under his impetus, in 1906 the IOC added five new disciplines to the Olympic programme: literature, painting, music, sculpture and architecture, or what the Baron preferred to call the "pentathlon of the muses".
After a few first steps, it was in 1912, at the Stockholm Games, that the first medals in the art and sport competition were awarded. Interestingly, among the 35 artists involved, Pierre de Coubertin (under his pseudonyms Georges Hohrod and Martin Eschbach) won the first gold medal in history in the literature category with his work Ode au sport.

The Games come to the Grand Palais

It was really during the Paris Games in 1924, at the Grand Palais, that the art and sport competition reached its golden age. Nearly 200 artists took part and presented their works to the jury, who chose the winners who received the same medals as the athletes. Despite their success in 1924, these art competitions were not very popular with the general public. Because of the limited number of candidates or the quality of the works, which were considered too poor, the IOC envisaged withdrawing these competitions from the programme. The Committee also criticised the artists for going against the principle of the Games' disinterested nature by selling their works to visitors, and withdrew the art and sport events. Their last appearance was in London in 1948.
Over its seven Olympiads of history, some of the protagonists have stood out for their versatility. Walter Winans, for example, won a gold medal in shooting in 1908 and then in 1912 in the "sculpture" category. Hungarian Alfréd Hajós won two gold medals in swimming in 1896 before taking silver in 1924 in the architecture category.

Although the arts and sport events disappeared in 1948, the artistic and sporting links remained at the heart of the Olympic spirit. The official posters and the opening and closing ceremonies are remarkable examples of this.

A growing sporting identity

In addition to the artistic events of 1924, the Grand Palais has hosted a number of sporting events throughout its history, justifying ( although not necessarily) its status as an Olympic and Paralympic venue this summer. In no particular order, these events include:

- The central Paris show, known as L'Hippique, with its three weeks of competitions, 1,500 horses and an average of 40,000 visitors. The 1906 event went down in equestrian history with the feat of Captain Crousse and his horse Conspirateur, who cleared a 2.35 m bar to become world equestrian high jump champions.

- The great gymnastics festival at the Grand Palais: nearly 1,000 gymnasts gather once a year to put on demonstrations (apparatus, pommel horse, boxing, wrestling, baton twirling, human pyramids).

- After the First World War, the site became a "playground" for the Grand Palais military hospital. In 1916, it had 1,300 beds and housed 700 soldiers undergoing rehabilitation, based in particular on rehabilitation gymnastics and muscle-strengthening exercises.

- The Christmas Cup: since 1908, this open-water swimming race has been run on the Seine, from the Port du Gros Caillou all the way across to the Conference under the Grand Palais, in extreme conditions.

- In 1937, the Grand Palais hosted the French International Professional Tennis Championship, known as the "French Pro". The fixtures were held in the Nave, which had been transformed for the occasion.

- The 1937 French Fencing Championships were held in the Grand Palais.

- Boxing had its heyday there, with Marcel Cerdan's fight against De Ridder on 28 June 1942.

- In January 1944, a new sport was introduced with the French women's volleyball team.

- After a period of renovation at the start of the 21st century, the Nave reopened to the public and hosted a number of sporting events: Pari-Roller (2009), More than a game (basketball in 2009), the Saut Hermès (equestrian) but above all, the world fencing championship in 2010. Seventy-three years after the French championship in 1937, fencing returned to the Grand Palais, bringing together 900 fencers from 110 nations in front of 4,500 spectators! A foretaste (even if we didn't know it at the time) of the Paris 2024 Games!

Yes, in 2024, the Grand Palais will be undergoing a new sporting adventure. In order to welcome the fencers and taekwondoists in the best possible conditions, the building has had to close its doors for three years for restoration work and to bring it up to standard. The events will take place in the Nave, which has just been restored for the occasion. 8,000 spectators will be able to watch the Olympic and Paralympic fencing and taekwondo competitions.