Paris Olympics: What to watch for

NPR is in Paris for the 2024 Summer Olympics. For more of our coverage from the games head to our latest updates.

PARIS — Welcome to the Paris Summer Olympics.

After COVID-19 pandemic restrictions kept spectators away for the last two Olympic Games (in Beijing and Tokyo), the French capital has prepared to welcome back crowds with a splash: the public will be treated to a unique opening ceremony on the iconic River Seine.

The outdoor ceremony — set to be the largest one yet, measured by audience and geographical sprawl — kicks off 16 days of sporting events held across the city and beyond.

Outside of Paris, the historic Palace of Versailles will host equestrian events, while surfing will take place some 10,000 miles away in Teahupo'o, Tahiti.

Continuing its streak of domination at the Summer Games, the United States is expected to collect the most medals in Paris, followed by China, Great Britain, France and then Australia. Russia, meanwhile — typically a top contender — is sending a very small number of athletes to Paris following consequences related to their country's doping and its invasion of Ukraine.

Here’s what else to know ahead of the Games before the opening ceremony on Friday.

1. An opening ceremony like no other

Close to 100 boats carrying more than 10,000 athletes and performers will glide down a 3.7-mile stretch of the River Seine during the opening ceremony on July 26. It's the first time in the history of the modern Olympics that's being held outside of a stadium, officials say.

The open-air event is expected to draw some 300,000 spectators — most of whom will pay no admission fee to watch the parade from the river’s upper embankments.

The parade will travel east to west, starting at Austerlitz Bridge, and then pass by major landmarks and event venues like the Grand Palais. The parade is set to end at the Pont d'Iéna bridge before a finale show at the Trocadéro opposite the Eiffel Tower.

Tony Estanguet, president of the Paris Games organizing committee, described the vision for the ceremony when the plan was announced in 2021.

"The entire city has been turned into a vast Olympic stadium. The Seine represents the track, and the quays the spectators' stands," Estanguet said.

The parade’s route also offers a sightseeing tour of some of the temporary sports venues, including an outdoor arena abutting the Eiffel Tower where beach volleyball games will take place.

2. A swimmable Seine?

There’s also the matter of the Seine as a competition venue. In the run-up to the games, a question has plagued officials: Will the Seine be swimmable in time for the Olympics? The sewage-polluted waters have been a hurdle to the city’s ambitious goal to hold the swim leg of the triathlon in the famous river where swimming has been historically banned.

Recent testing of the water has turned up unsafe levels of E. coli bacteria caused by fecal matter, but tests earlier this month showed acceptable bacteria levels. In an effort to silence skeptics, last week Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo followed through on her promise to take a dip in the Seine and declared the waters perfectly safe.

3. Breaking will make its Olympics debut

Following the previous Summer Games’ addition of skateboarding and surfing, another sport with counterculture roots will take the Olympics stage for the first time in Paris. Breaking — best known to the uninitiated as "break-dancing" — is a dance style said to have originated in the 1970s from the streets of New York City's South Bronx and inspired by the break beats and hip-hop tracks played by DJs and MCs. But the athleticism involved in the art form — head-spins, backflips and other acrobatics — is undeniable.

Breaking became more mainstream in the 1990s as it entered pop culture and expanded in popularity through international competition. And in 2016, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) added breaking to the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires.

Although it’s an American export, other countries including Japan, Canada and The Netherlands boast talent that’s been known to surpass the U.S. competitively.

In Paris, 16 b-boys (male breakers) and 16 b-girls will go head to head in separate battles at Place de la Concorde, an outdoor public square. The women’s competition is set for Aug. 9 and men’s is on Aug. 10. On Team USA, look out for medal contenders Victor Montalvo and Grace "Sunny" Choi.

4. Simone Biles leads American gymnasts’ shot at redemption

The same U.S. women’s gymnastics team that took home a silver medal at the Tokyo Games all-around final in 2021 is hoping to rewrite their Olympic ending in Paris.

Three years ago, Biles, who at 27 is the most decorated gymnast of all time, came down with a case of the "twisties," a debilitating psychological affliction that forced her to pull out of several events to focus on her mental health. In her place, Suni Lee had emerged as the unlikely champion, and went on to earn a gold medal in the individual all-around competition in Tokyo.

Joining Biles and Lee are Jordan Chiles, Jade Carey, and 16-year-old newcomer Hezly Rivera.

Now, with Biles in top form and the team united in its goal of "redemption," the women’s squad is the favorite to win gold. And especially so, given that Russia, the defending gold medalist, won’t be there. The IOC plans to allow only some Russian athletes to compete as "individual neutral athletes" under strict conditions it set in response to Russia’s war in Ukraine. The country's absence also improves the men's chances of medaling in a sport normally dominated by Russia, China and Japan.

5. Ledecky and Dressel headline U.S. swim team

Entering her fourth Olympics, Katie Ledecky continues to dominate the 800- and 1,500-meter freestyle events, in both of which she still holds the world records. Seven of her Olympic medals are gold, putting her just two wins away from earning the most Olympic gold medals of any female athlete in history. Younger swimmers have Ledecky beat in the 400-meter freestyle: Australia’s Ariarne Titmus (who took gold in Tokyo and also reigns in the 200-meter event) and Canada's Summer McIntosh have each knocked down Ledecky’s world record, which Titmus currently holds. The Titmus-McIntosh-Ledecky 400-meter race should make for a thrilling watch.

In men's swimming, the U.S. is looking for a superstar and hoping that Caeleb Dressel is it. The 27-year-old won five gold medals in Tokyo — joining an elite few of swimmers that have won that many in a single Games, including Michael Phelps and Mark Spitz. After taking an eight-month break from the sport, Dressel showed at the Olympic trials last month that he’s still fast in sprints.

Heading into Paris, however, the two fastest swimmers in the world are not from the usual rival powerhouses (Australia and the U.S.) but from Canada — McIntosh on the women’s — and France — Léon Marchand.

6. A Chinese doping scandal casts a shadow over swimming

A doping scandal sparked international outrage after it was revealed in April that 32 Chinese swimmers tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug ahead of the Tokyo Games in 2021 but were cleared to compete. The drug in question — called trimetazidine or TMZ — is the same one found in a sample from Kamila Valieva, the Russian figure skater who was subsequently slapped with a four-year ban from international competition.

Chinese officials say an unintentional contamination led to the positive tests. The World Anti-Doping Agency accepted that explanation after its investigation and said that international doping rules don’t require them to ban the athletes.

The U.S. Justice Department has opened a criminal probe into the case involving the swimmers. Meanwhile, China is expected to send 11 of the 32 swimmers who had the performance drug in their system in 2021 to compete in Paris.

The agency's handling of the positive tests has sowed doubt deeper among critics who question whether the regulatory body responsible for curbing cheating holds some countries to a lower standard than others.

7. The rivalry between American and Jamaican sprinters

The 100-meter sprint, the most popular track event, has shaped up to be a familiar two-nation race. Representing Jamaica in the women’s race is Shericka Jackson, whose biggest challenge is American Sha'Carri Richardson. But don’t overlook Jamaican sprint queen Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, who will race in her fifth and final Olympics 16 years after becoming the first Caribbean woman to win the 100-meter gold. They are chasing Florence Griffith Joyner's record set in 1988.

In the 200-meter, there’s a real chance we could see the fall of Flo-Jo's world record set that same year when she ran 21.34 seconds. Jackson will go head-to-head with Gabby Thomas of Team USA.

In the men’s 100-meter race, Noah Lyles on Team USA will face Jamaica’s Oblique Seville and Kishane Thompson, each aiming to break the world record time set by eight-time Olympic gold medalist Usain Bolt. Still, the field is brimming with talent that clouds podium predictions. Other top contenders include reigning Olympic champion Marcell Jacobs of Italy, Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo and a former world champion American Fred Kerley.

Lyles also racing in the 200-meter — his better event — a race that won’t be as wide open as the 100. He's the favorite, ahead of Tebogo, a notable exception to the rivalry who won the men's race last week at an international meet in Monaco.

8. In soccer, U.S. women hope to get back to winning gold. The U.S. men play their first Olympics in ages

Soccer starts before the Games officially kick off with the opening ceremony. The U.S. women's national team is aiming to upgrade their bronze medal from Tokyo. The four-time gold medalists haven’t taken first on the podium since the 2012 Games in London. Since the retirement of major stars — Megan Rapinoe, Carli Lloyd, Julie Ertz, Sam Mewis — has made way for a younger team, which will be led by new head coach Emma Hayes, former manager of the women’s Chelsea Football Club. World Cup champion Spain is the favorite to take gold.

The last time the U.S. sent a men’s soccer team to the Olympics was in 2008, and they haven't medaled since 1904. Since the rule to restrict the competition to players under 23 went into effect in 1992, the men’s team has advanced to the knockout stage only once.

The men kick off their tournament on Wednesday in a game against host country France, a favorite to win it all. The women's squad plays Zambia on Thursday.