Paris 2024 Olympic Games: the Stade de France unveils its brand new purple athletics track

The track which will host the exploits of the athletes at the Stade de France is unfolding! Paris 2024 wanted it to be purple, in order to fit perfectly with the “look” of the Games, where purple, green and blue will be in the spotlight on the various Olympic sites.

For three weeks, it has been being installed in the Dyonisian enclosure, while the lighting was modified during previous work – 650 LEDs were placed on the roof, architectural lighting makes it possible to create animations – and that two new giant screens, the equivalent of a surface tennis court, are now in place for the Olympics.

“We wanted it to be different”

If the track is essentially financed by the Stade de France Consortium (as part of the work plan), the Organizing Committee, which paid the modification costs, was able to put its foot down. “We wanted it to be different and fit into the creative approach desired by the Cojo, so we moved away from the terra cotta and blue that we usually see,” underlines Alain Blondel, manager athletics events at Paris 2024. The base of the track is almost identical to that of Tokyo, where the performances of the athletes were quite exceptional.

The track will have nine lanes. DR

The old track was completely removed, two layers of asphalt were then laid, serving as a base for the new surface. The installation of the tartan, which represents an area of ​​14,000 m2 (1,000 rolls, 2,800 pots of glue), began 3 weeks ago. Two tones of purple have been chosen to color the tartan and, thanks to the contrasts, facilitate references for the athletes: light for the track, darker for the service areas, while the restart in the turns will be gray, in order to remind the cinder track of the 1924 Olympics.

Nine lanes will be installed

Never before has Mondo, the Italian company which has supplied the Olympic tracks with vulcanized rubber since 1992, used purple. “A track must be pretty but above all it is a stage on which the athletes will perform,” summarizes Alain Blondel. It is important that they stand out from the color and, from the tests we carried out, we realized that it went quite well. The feelings of comfort and well-being are quite important when spending time in a stadium, I think the athletes will be comfortable there. »

The track will also be more eco-responsible, thanks in particular to the use of… mussel shells, aimed at reducing the use of petroleum-based materials.

Some 1,000 rolls, representing 14,000 m2 of track, were rolled out at the Stade de France. DR

Nine lanes will be installed, while the long and triple jumps, which were formerly at the foot of the presidential stand, have been moved to the opposite straight, the place where there are the most paying spectators. A central saltire has been added, a way of providing additional spectacle. It is on this one that the finals will take place. The athletes will start from one side to arrive at the foot of the central stand, a first in a major championship.

Already 900,000 tickets sold for athletics events

Another modification at the Stade de France, the pole has been shifted in the half-pipes, as is often the case during international events. “All of this responds to a technical constraint,” points out Alain Blondel. If we want condensed schedules for production, we need an optimal organization of the stadium, hence the idea of ​​distributing the technical equipment. »

The long throw competitions will all take place in the south turn (at the start of the 400m), once again a way of allowing the entire stadium to benefit, while nearly 900,000 tickets have already been sold for the events. athletics which will begin on August 1st.