The Story Behind the Paris 2024 Olympics Logo

Last month the Paris 2024 Olympics logo was released, to a mix of praise and outrage. In an exclusive for CR, Jean Grogan talks to its makers and discovers its eco credentials

Suddenly, in mid-October, all the Paris Olympic Games 2024 websites shut down for several days. All logos and visuals disappeared, leaving just text on a black background.

At precisely 20.24 on October 21, the new Paris Olympic Games 2024 visual identity was revealed to the world on the giant screen of Europe’s biggest cinema, Le Grand Rex, outlined on a background of a map of central Paris.

The dramatically simple one-colour icon is comprised of three elements; the gold medal, Olympic flame, and Marianne, the symbol of the French Republic, centred above a bespoke logotype. For the first time in history, the Olympic and Paralympic identities are presented using the same symbol. And also, this is the first time a non-abstract human form has been used in an Olympic Games logo.

As would be expected, the logo launch generated a huge response. Though it turns out that the logo’s creation has been marked by both innovation and high drama from its brief to launch, and now beyond. Here is the story of how it was made.