Paris Transforms Ahead of 2024 Olympics: City Goes Car-Free with New Venues and Blooming Gardens.
As the 2024 Olympic Games approach, Paris has dramatically transformed its historic center into a sprawling, car-free zone. Temporary sporting venues and seating have turned parts of the city into a vast stadium-like area.
From Pont d’Austerlitz in the east to Pont d’Iéna in the west, major bridges and roads alongside the Seine have been closed to accommodate a sea of spectator stands set up for the opening ceremony. Stadium-style bleachers now surround Place de la Concorde, a location historically known for executions, where events like skateboarding, BMX, 3×3 basketball, and break-dancing will take place.
Amid the hustle of construction, Paris’s team of 1,500 gardeners has been busy preparing the city’s parks and gardens. By mid-July, vibrant summer blooms such as anemones, sweet woodruff, geraniums, mountain fleece, marigolds, and a new standout—the double-headed dahlia—have come into full bloom. This dahlia, a striking vermilion hybrid created by the city’s horticultural team, has been selected as the official Olympic flower. Over 50,000 of these dahlias are now planted across 150 of Paris’s green spaces, from large parks like Trocadero to smaller gardens like Édouard-Vaillant square and the Fondation Dosne-Thiers garden.
David Lacroix, head of DEVE (La Direction des Espaces Verts et de l’Environnement of Paris), describes the dahlia as a unique creation meant to be distinctly Parisian, likening its color to the Olympic flame. Although not an official mascot, the dahlia has garnered more attention than the Phryges, quirky anthropomorphic caps that have been criticized as odd.
Lacroix and I met in the Champs-Élysées gardens, a 15-hectare park stretching from Place de la Concorde to the Grand Palais, where fencing and Taekwondo events will occur. The promenade, an urban oasis with origins dating back to the 17th century, now features new garden beds and misting stations for the Games. Lacroix notes that all of Paris’s gardens have received enhancements this year to ensure they are at their most beautiful and welcoming.
The dahlia variety, originally named the “Parc Floral de Paris” dahlia, was created by Christophe Kneblewski in 2016. It was cultivated in vitro at the DEVE laboratory and chosen for its hardiness and early blooming, aligning with the Games’ timeline. Despite concerns about this spring’s rainy and cool weather, the dahlias have thrived.
Lacroix’s team, which cultivates many plants and trees for the city, continues to expand Paris’s green spaces under Mayor Anne Hidalgo’s administration. Their efforts include adding vegetation along streets and in front of schools, as part of a broader initiative to green the city.
Creating new plant varieties, like the dahlia, is rare but a passion for Kneblewski, who is an expert in dahlias and oversees the Parc Floral’s collection of 420 varieties. While the new dahlia will not be featured in this year’s international dahlia competition or the Olympic athletes’ bouquets, it will be prominently displayed in floral arrangements at the Hôtel de Ville and other administrative venues, playing a significant role in showcasing Paris’s soft power.