The 2024 Summer Olympics will be held in Paris, France, starting on July 26 and concluding on August 11. This year’s Olympics will feature “Breaking” as a new sport, as well as bringing back skateboarding, surfing, and sport climbing from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Breaking, widely known as breakdancing, will launch its first Olympic appearance at the 2024 Paris Olympics after its great success and subsequent rise in popularity during 2018’s Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires. Utilizing a tournament format, 16 boys and 16 girls will compete in separate competitions, one for men and one for women. Each group will be divided into four smaller groups consisting of four breakers, where each participant will battle everyone in their group. Two breakers from each group will move on to the knock-out phase and they will be seeded into a bracket. During these matchups, otherwise known as “throw downs,” breakers must improvise to the beat of the music chosen by the DJ for three one-minute rounds. This new and highly anticipated event will be sure to captivate viewers with its unique style and format.
Skateboarding returns to the Olympics this summer after its successful debut in 2020’s Tokyo Olympics. It will feature two separate events, park and street. Park skateboarding utilizes a concrete bowl that involves ramps, rails, and quarter pipes, and focuses on the building of momentum to perform air tricks. Street skateboarding, designed similarly to an urban environment, involves street-like obstacles such as stairs, curbs, rails, and ledges. It focuses on the combination of many skills and tricks to interact with the varied obstacles. In both events, 22 men and 22 women, will compete in the preliminary round, followed by the final round. The top eight skaters from the preliminary round will move onto the finals. In the park competition, each skater will have three 45-second runs in the preliminary round and finals. In the street competition, skaters will attempt five tricks during two 45-second runs in both rounds. Skateboarding is expected to receive high support and viewership from fans, just as it did during its first run.
Also coming back to the Olympics this year after premiering in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games is surfing. The competition will take place in Teahupo’o on the island of Tahiti in French Polynesia. The decison to hold surfing here stems from the Olympic-class waves provided by Teahupo’o, along with the opportunity to engage overseas French territories in the Games. Over the course of a nine-day window, wave conditions will determine which four days are used for competition, where 24 men and 24 will showcase their skills and talent. The breathtaking yet challenging waves of Teahupo’o will create an exhilirating and intense competition to watch.
At this year’s Olympics, sport climbing has undergone a change in format from the 2020 Olympics, where it will feature two competitions, a speed climbing event, and a combined bouldering and lead climbing event, instead of one event, where all three disciplines are combined. 14 men and 14 women will compete in the speed event, where athletes aim to reach the top of a 15-meter wall as quick as possible. Climbers will race head-to-head and progress to the finals through a bracket. In the combined bouldering and lead climbing event, 20 men and 20 women will attempt to reach the highest point they can on the wall. Climbers can earn up to 100 points from the bouldering and lead portions and receive a combined score of up to 200 points. Eight climbers with the highest scores will advance to the finals, where the highest combined score will determine the winner. Speed climbing was separated from bouldering and lead climbing for this year’s Olympics as it involves a different skillset, where it focuses on fast climbing, while bouldering and lead climbing requires a prolonged effort.
It will be interesting to see a new sport take the stage at the Olympics this year, as well as how the sports from the 2020 Olympics have progressed since their debut. Looking ahead to the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, breaking has been knocked off the list, but skateboarding, surfing, and sport climbing are among many sports that will return.
