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The Paris 2024 Olympic Games are actively being prepared, with the recent unveiling of the official poster and the traditional Games choreography. While the dance is meant to be a unifying and festive symbol, accessible to everyone, the poster, on the other hand, has sparked significant controversy, with some criticizing it for erasing French symbols. Let’s revisit these two emblematic elements of the 2024 Olympics.
The Games Dance: An Inclusive and Joyous Choreography
Revealed on Friday, December 2, 2022 during the Téléthon, the official Dance of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games aims to be a moment of sharing and celebration. Created by choreographer Mourad Merzouki, known for his contemporary style with hip-hop influences, this 3-minute dance is designed to be accessible to as many people as possible. Mourad Merzouki explains his approach, “It’s a very short dance that invites both young and old, dancers and non-dancers, to a common gesture, to a dance that unites, a dance that evokes celebration, a dance linked to the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, with nods to sports movements.” Thus, the choreography incorporates gestures inspired by various Olympic disciplines such as archery, boxing and football. The goal is to create a moment of spontaneous and joyful sharing that everyone can replicate, as Dominique Hervieu, choreographer and cultural director of Paris 2024, points out, “You don’t need to be in great physical shape. You can do it just for the pleasure of moving. And so, it brings together professionals and amateurs.” To enable the widest participation, tutorials and educational resources have been made available, in partnership with the National Dance Centre.
A contest is also being organized, in connection with the Ministry of National Education and school and university federations, to highlight the most beautiful interpretations. The idea is for this dance to go viral and be activated throughout the Games, whether in fan zones, stands or spontaneously. With engaging music by Gotan Project, the Games Dance is an invitation to celebration and the joy of togetherness.
A Controversial Poster
While the choreography aims to be unifying, the official poster of the Paris 2024 Olympics has, conversely, ignited a fiery debate since its unveiling on Tuesday, March 7, 2023. Several right-wing and far-right political figures have sharply criticized this creation by illustrator Ugo Gattoni, faulting it for the absence of the tricolor flag and the Christian cross on the dome of Les Invalides. Jordan Bardella, president of the National Rally, thus condemned “the contempt for our tricolor flag, the erasure of our Christian heritage.” His colleague, deputy Thomas Ménagé, bemoaned, “A sadly ridiculous example of France’s great erasure.” The Republicans have also voiced their criticism. François-Xavier Bellamy denounced those “ready to deny France to the point of distorting reality to erase its history,” while Éric Ciotti believes the poster “denies the very identity of this building as well as French history.” Other political figures like Nicolas Dupont-Aignan or Marion Maréchal also expressed their indignation at this representation considered scandalous, questioning the point of “organizing the Olympic Games in France if it is to hide who we are.” In response to these criticisms, illustrator Ugo Gattoni wished to assert his artistic vision. He explains not aiming to “represent objects or buildings accurately” but rather to evoke them as they “appear in his mind without ulterior motives.” He thus places the elements “in a surreal and festive universe” without aiming for an exhaustive or faithful representation of reality.
The Olympics Organizing Committee also defended this “joyful, light artistic interpretation of a reinvented city stadium” in which “many elements could be reinterpreted by the artist.” It emphasizes that it is a “representation that is neither exhaustive nor faithful to reality,” mentioning other imaginative details like the Tahiti wave off Marseille, the pink Eiffel Tower, or the metro passing under the Arc de Triomphe, “without this needing to be interpreted politically.”
As the Paris 2024 Olympic Games draw closer, the official poster and traditional choreography offer a glimpse into the spirit that will animate this global sporting event. Although the Games Dance is intended to be a unifying, simple and joyful symbol, inviting everyone to celebrate the pleasure of movement, the poster has, in contrast, stirred a lively debate, with some accusing it of erasing symbols of French identity. The artist and the organizing committee defend a surreal and festive artistic vision, devoid of political intent. Beyond this controversy, however, the spirit of unity and celebration, embodied by Mourad Merzouki’s choreography, will likely prevail at this grand sporting and popular gathering.
