PARIS, Aug. 9 (Xinhua) -- International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach hailed the Paris 2024 Olympics as a "love story" on Friday, celebrating the unity and enthusiasm that has marked the Games.
"The 2024 Paris Olympics is a love story. The athletes, the French people, and the fans all around the world are in love with the Games and with each other," Bach remarked at a press conference, pointing to the vibrancy of the venues, the streets of Paris, and the Olympic Village as evidence of widespread passion.
Bach praised the French people's deep connection to the Games, noting that it was "a heartfelt celebration." "It was the celebration coming here from the heart, with all the friendliness, the hospitality, the curiosity, the interest. It was really heartwarming to see," he added.
He also sang the praises of the Paris 2024 slogan "Games Wide Open," stating that it perfectly summarizes the spirit of the Olympics.
"The slogan of Paris 2024 could not have been a more appropriate slogan for the first Olympic Games fully planned and delivered in line with our Olympic Agenda 2020," Bach said, referencing the IOC's strategy to make the Games more sustainable, urban, younger and inclusive.
Bach underscored that Paris 2024 marked the first Olympic Games with full gender parity, a key vision of the Olympic Agenda 2020, and emphasized that the athletes were at the heart of all efforts.
The IOC chief also addressed the enormous global following for the Paris Games, predicting it would be the most watched in Olympic history.
"We are on track for more than half of the world's population to have followed the Olympic Games. The figures are just going through the roof, both broadcast and digital," he revealed, citing the 12 billion engagements on the IOC's social media platforms alone.
"For all these reasons, I think we can probably say the Paris Olympics is the Olympic Games of a new era," Bach added.
