The 2024 Paris Olympics are finally here! Technically, some events including soccer, rugby, handball, and archery already started on Wednesday. TONIGHT, though, the Opening Ceremony kicks it all off officially with a unique ceremony– the FIRST to be held somewhere other than a stadium.
The ceremony will include a colorful river parade via the Seine through the heart of Paris! All of the Olympic athletes participating in the ceremony will be floating along the Seine on boats, which will be super cool and unique to see!
The Opening Ceremony starts TODAY (July 26th)– it will be streamed live at 1:30pm ET on Peacock and replayed on NBC primetime at 7:30pm ET.
Brief history of the Olympics
The official Olympic Games started back in 776 BC (at least the first recorded evidence of the Games) and the Greeks began measuring time in Olympiads. These Olympiads signified the duration of time between each Olympic Games. Similar to today, the Games were held every four years. The ancient Greeks held the Olympic Games to honor their god, Zeus.
The ancient Oympic Games were comprised of running, long jump, shot put, javelin, boxing, equestrian, and an event called pankration (a combo of boxing and wrestling).
In 393 AD, Theodosius I, the Roman Emperor at the time, actually banned the Olympic Games due to religious reasons claiming that they promoted paganism. No attempt at reviving the Games occured until the end of the 19th century when initiatives to re-establish an international sporting event failed due to a lack of coordination.
Finally, in June of 1894, a man named Baron Pierre de Coubertin organized the first Olympic Congress, coincidentally held in Paris! This ignited the revival of the modern Olympic Games, and the rest is history!
Schedule and Viewing Info
The Olympic events officially began on Wednesday, July 24th and they will continue through Sunday, August 11th. Streaming for all events will be available on Peacock, and events will also be televised on NBC an USA channels.
This link provides the schedule for all sporting events: Olympic Schedule & Results
You can also narrow down selected events using the filter option on this page to simplify viewing the schedules for your favorites!
Something New to the Olympics: Repechage Rounds
Repe–what?! You may be just as confused as I was upon seeing this news. The French word repechage is pronounced “reh-puh-shaaj” and essentially means “second chance.”
These repechage rounds are being introduced to track events this Olympics for the first time and are replacing those “small-q” time qualifiers for the first round of events in each distance ranging from the 200m to the 1500m.
Basically, this will give the athletes that miss out on auto-qualifiers to the semi-finals another opportunity to race and advance.
Just like before, each preliminary round will have a set number of top finishers that qualify for the next round (i.e., top 3 in each heat). Instead of these events coming away with a few additional qualifiers based on time, there will be an extra round to compete in for any athletes that didn’t earn the “big Q.”
This new repechage system should definitely spice it up and make it extra fun for us track fans to watch the Olympic runners! It also gives more racing opportunity to the athletes that maybe aren’t the medal favorites. Should be interesting to watch!
Athletes to Watch: Former Clients of Dr. Greg’s Competing in Paris
Pay extra attention to men’s 400m hurdles and men’s marathon in this Olympic Games, as each of those events feature former clients of Dr. Greg! His 400m hurdles client competes for the British Virgin Islands, and his marathon client represents the U.S. Virgin Islands– it’s pretty cool seeing someone you’ve worked with competing on the biggest stage in the world!
AWAKEN YOUR POTENTIAL like an Olympian
The best of the best have trusted us– so you can too! If you’re looking for a solution to pain or an injury that you’ve been struggling with, don’t hesitate to reach out for a FREE phone consultation to learn more about how we can help you!
With every single client, we follow a 3-step process:
First, we investigate the root cause of your pain or issue and determine the best treatment strategy.
Second, we prevent reccurance by educating you on realistic strategies to efficiently and effectively prevent the likelihood of reinjury in the future.
The third and final step is often overlooked in PT clinics– we don’t settle for a mediocre return to your activity. Our goal is to help you AWAKEN YOUR FULL POTENTIAL to help you return to the activity you’re most passionate about BETTER than before!
Check out our website to find out more!
Happy Olympics watching!!
Gregory Lowe PT, DPT, cert. MDT, CSCS, BFR cert., 3D RGA Spec.
Licensed Physical Therapist (PT)
Doctorate of Physical Therapy (DPT)
Certified in Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy (cert. MDT)
Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS)
Blood Flow Restriction Certified (BFR cert.)
3-D Running Gait Analysis Specialist (3D RGA Spec.)
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