Paris will host the 2024 Olympic Games – Statement by Jean-Yves Le Drian (13 September 2017)

This success recognizes a collective and determined voluntary effort.

The Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs has been committed to promoting and supporting the Paris Olympic bid committee for more than two years. I would like to thank the committee for its efforts and congratulate it on this great success.

The entire French diplomatic network made the 2024 Paris bid a part of its dialogue with France’s foreign partners and contributed to its promotion, while observing the rules of the IOC Code of Ethics. Numerous events (sporting, cultural, fine dining, French art of living, etc.) were organized by the services of the embassies, the consulates general, the alliances françaises and French lycées. These events reflected sporting and Olympic values, such as respect and friendship, and also highlighted the attractiveness of France - which plays host to many major sporting events -, as well as French innovation and expertise, and the French language, one of the IOC’s two official languages.

With a responsible and controlled budget, these Olympic Games will have an estimated economic impact of €10.7 billion for the period 2017-2034, according to a study by the Center for Law and Economics of Sport. The estimated impact on tourism will amount to €3.5 billion, not counting the long-term benefits in terms of our country’s appeal to tourists, thanks to the new transport infrastructure that has been planned and to the media coverage of such an event. They will also reflect the dynamism of French firms and their capacity to innovate.

The diplomatic network will continue its efforts to explain and describe this project to all our partners in order to immediately take full advantage of it from an economic as well as tourism perspective.