On the morning of June 7, 2024, 49 days before the start of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, the city of Paris woke up to a big surprise: the Olympic rings had been installed on the Eiffel Tower, between the first and second floors!
At each Olympics, the five giant rings, which are a major symbol of the Olympic Movement also known as the “Spectaculars”, are installed in an iconic place or monument in the Host City. After Tower Bridge in London on 2012, Madureira Park in Rio in 2016, and Odaiba Beach in Tokyo in 2021, the Eiffel Tower was chosen by the Olympic Organizing Committee to proudly bear the Olympic colors this summer. What a symbol!
True technical prowess
95 feet wide and 43 feet high, the Olympic rings were designed and made by the company ArcelorMittal. The operation to install the rings was a true feat of technical prowess at over 200 feet off the ground. It involved months of meticulous preparation with Société d’Exploitation de la Tour Eiffel (SETE). In collaboration with the experts from ArcelorMittal France, Paris 2024 undertook all the feasibility studies required to ensure safety and preserve the monument: placement on the structure, attachment points, weight distribution, etc.
The entire operation was supervised and validated by the competent inspection authorities (technical experts and inspection body). The final operation required immense precision, using spectacular cranes - two 500-tonne cranes and two 100-tonne cranes - to lift and attach the rings between the first and second floors. It took place during the night between June 6 and 7, 2024.
At the heart of the Paris 2024 Olympics and Paralympics
With the installation of the Olympic rings, the Eiffel Tower has become an even more integral part of the Paris 2024 Olympics and Paralympics: it is included in the Olympic and Paralympic medals, on the podium design, in the opening ceremony, and is also located at the intersection between certain stadiums and essential Olympic sites (Parc des Champions, Champ de Mars Arena, Iéna Bridge). It’s even on currency: from June 2024, the Tower will be displayed on 24 million commemorative €2 coins, released into circulation by the Paris Mint.
Come and admire it decorated with the Olympic rings, in color during the day and lit up in white at night!
The spectacular installation of the “Spectaculars” on the Eiffel Tower
