Home Olympics Advantage? Paris Produced, Los Angeles Next Up

Leon Marchand -- Photo Courtesy: Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto

Home Olympics Advantage? Paris Produced, Los Angeles Next Up

The enduring image of the Paris Olympics will be the resplendent temporary stadium that hosted beach volleyball in the shadow of the Eifel Tower, the ultimate symbol of the historic city. But don’t sleep on the Grand Palais, the massive exhibition hall located a short walk down the Avenue des Champs-Élysées from the Arc de Triomphe. The Palais, originally opened in 1900, is known for its glass barrel-vaulted roof and was dedicated “by the French Republic to the glory of French art,” according to its official website.

This was the site of fencing and taekwondo during the Games, with a three-year renovation capped off with temporary seating for 8,000 built within the vast hall. And as with most other venues in Paris, the fans from the home nation took over the building with raucous support for their favorite athletes. Those efforts certainly paid off inside the Grand Palais, as France captured seven medals, two more than any other country.

The Grand Palais hosted fencing and taekwondo during the Paris Olympics

On the afternoon of the women’s team épée semifinals, two matchups took place concurrently, with Italy taking on China and France battling Poland. Unsurprisingly, most of the French fans in attendance could not have cared less about the Italian team’s 45-24 demolition of China on the blue piste. All eyes were on the green platform as France and Poland went back-and-forth during the nine round-robin matchups.

The rousing chorus of “Allez Les Bleus!” drowned out other sounds. The stands shook as the French team grabbed momentum at the end to reach the target score of 45 and advance to the gold-medal matchup, in which Italy would prevail by a single point (30-29).

France’s athletes and teams undoubtedly got a boost from the home crowds at the Games of the 33rd Olympiad. The host nation captured 64 medals and 16 gold, clobbering the 10 golds and 33 total medals the country earned at the last Olympics in Tokyo. The country’s national heroes included Teddy Riner, the judo player who joined in lighting the Olympic torch before winning two gold medals, and Leon Marchand, the swimmer who pulled off one of the most successful single-meet performances ever with four individual golds.

The images of Marchand celebrating his gold medals only tell a portion of the story; no one inside La Défense Arena on the nights he won gold will forget the thunderous roar upon his introduction, the unison chant of “Allez!” every time he popped up for air on breaststroke or the impromptu rendition of their national anthem, “La Marseillaise,” minutes before Marchand’s inevitable coronation in the 400 IM final.

No, the Olympics were not a perfect experience for all: athletes grumbled about the long bus trips between the venues and the Olympic village, averaging 40 minutes each way on buses without air conditioning to La Défense Arena, and there were food shortages during the start of the Games. Many swimmers ended up leaving the village and staying in hotels adjacent to the competition venue.

But the French fans delivered every bit of the energy and passion their country and their athletes might have wanted. Now, the pressure is on the host nation of the next Summer Olympics to provide the same boost.

In 2028, Los Angeles will lack some of the historic and handsome scenes of Paris — and the utility of the confusing-yet-accessible Paris metro — but expect plenty of glitz and glamor: basketball at the Intuit Dome, the soon-to-open home of the LA Clippers with a 38,375-square-foot halo board that surrounds the playing surface; swimming at SoFi Stadium, home of two NFL teams, with a capacity of 38,000 that will create by far the largest audience to ever watch the sport in person.

If American fans can approximate the support and home-country advantage France provided over the last month, it will be up to the athletes and teams to match that in performance. The U.S. largely shined in Paris, topping the overall medal count while matching China for the most goals. Historic success in track and field produced 14 gold medals and 34 total podium finishes. A home Olympics will help continue that surge in many sports while potentially providing an edge for teams that struggled this time around.

Of particular note here: the U.S. men’s swim team, coming off a performance best described as lackluster, with only six individual medals in the pool and a single individual gold, coming at the last possible opportunity. Righting the ship in time for a home Olympics will be of paramount focus in the coming months and years.

American Olympians have now departed Paris and dispersed to hometowns, colleges or well-earned vacations, but the seed is planted. They watched the reception that Marchand, Riner, the women’s épée team and so many other French athletes received, and when they return to training, they will be eagerly anticipating something similar in LA.

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