Thomas Bach has not yet reached the point of speaking of himself in the past tense. "I still have six months of mandate", he repeats with a smile to those, already numerous, who ask him about the legacy he thinks he will leave in the Olympic movement. But the IOC president does not forbid himself from looking back. When it comes to the Paris 2024 Games, the exercise even seems to delight him.
On Thursday, December 5, the German leader opened the press conference of the last meeting of the executive board of the Olympic year, held since two days before in Lausanne, with an assessment of the Paris 2024 Games. He listed the event's figures at length. Their audience, especially.
He did so without forcing the pace, giving his audience time to meditate on each of his sentences. To conclude that Paris 2024 had been the most followed edition of the Games in history. And to end his presentation with these few words spoken in French: " Thank you Paris 2024 and hats off ». Merci Paris et chapeau.
The IOC did not compile the figures itself. It entrusted the task to three of the world's leading opinion pollsters, Nielsen, Ipsos and Publicis Sport & Entertainment. Their study of more than 55.000 people aged 13 to 65 in 18 countries is contained in a 19-page document.
What should we remember? A series of Olympic records, set at the Paris 2024 Games, often even shattered to a degree that commands respect. A litany of historic performances. But, let's bet, they will most certainly already be erased in less than four years at the Los Angeles 2028 Games. Here are the main ones.
No less than 84% of the potential global audience followed the Paris 2024 Games. In total, this represents around five billion people, or more than half of the world's population. Amazing.
Each viewer watched an average of nine hours of programming, an increase of 20% compared to the Tokyo 2020 Games. In France, the event reached new heights, with 95% of the potential audience following an average of 24 hours of coverage of the events.
As expected, digital platforms have shattered all previous scores. This is always the case in the Olympic movement, where each edition of the Games does better than the last. The study estimates the number of interactions at 412 billion, for 270 million posts on social media, up 290% from Tokyo 2020. Around 70% of the global audience watched the competitions on television and digital platforms.
For the Olympic ecosystem, the Paris 2024 Games have had the effect of a jackpot. Athletes, National Olympic Committees, International Federations and Organising Committees have gained a total of 85 million followers to their social media accounts.
Along the same lines, 78% of respondents said they thought the Olympics were more important than ever in a divided world. Seven in ten people see Paris 2024 as a " success " and believe they will leave a positive legacy.
The survey also questioned the main actors of the show, the athletes. Not always the most indulgent. But it turns out that, like everyone else, they enjoyed the experience. And even a little more. No less than 95% of them judged it to be positive.
« At the Paris 2024 Games, our vision of Agenda 2020+5 became a reality, Thomas Bach summed up in front of the media. The Paris 2024 Games were those of a new era. » The German can rejoice. He is leaving on a success. Always good to take.
