My time in Paris for the Olympic Games has been surreal to say the least. The days have been flying by and after more than a week living in the village there is even some form of routine.

For me, the Olympics is like Disneyland for sports fans. It is a ‘magical place’. ‘Dreams come true’. It is the ‘…happiest place on earth’.  All of those other catch phrases Walt Disney rolled out more than 50 years ago!

I am very lucky to have a room which looks over the River Siene and a large section of the village.  It has its own balcony and I come and go as I please.  

There is generally a bike at the front door and I can jump on that and cycle the 800m or so to the dining hall/entry -or village entry/exit point.  I could wait the 5 minutes for a shuttle to take me where I want to go in the village. The athletes have access to a medical clinic; recovery centre; boutique shops and even a small supermarket. The last two business’ are the only thing you need money for in the village

All transport – within the village and from the village to the venues are both free of charge and make regular circuits throughout the precinct. The meals area has about 8 different sections ranging from World to French to Halal to Asian where the only thing stopping you from going back again and again is your conscience!

There is a massive gym within the village fully kitted out with state of the art TechnoGym gear worth millions of dollars. There are movie theatres and drinks areas. I have found a couple of quieter spots. One of them was like a great secret – it is a French Bakery where they make primarily bread sticks but also other French pastries. Right beside it is a coffee shop where you can get whatever coffee you want – yes it is free too!  I discovered a coffee I had never heard of before called a Cortado. It is like an espresso with a dash of milk. Not sure if it is because they are free but I have had so many cortados here I can nearly speak the language.  As the days have gone by here, the little secret spot is not such a secret any more but it is worth the wait so long as I can snag a table under a tree…

As you travel around the village the major sponsors are pretty evident. Visa is one – you can only buy stuff with visa card or God forbid, you actually carry cash! I would rather pay cash as the conversion rate from the Euro to Aussie dollar is not that great. The price of merchandise from the boutique is outrageous…then when you calculate the exchange difference it becomes outrageous with a very descriptive word prior to that – %$%^*@ outrageous!  Then a I calculate all of these free meals, free coffees, free transport – not to mention the accomodation and suddenly the exchange rate is pretty reasonable!

The other big sponsor is Coca Cola. There are literally vending machines on every corner. I have a special little Paris Olympics tag that I use with the machine and it gives me the drink as chosen. It is not just coke. It is all the other sugar filled liquids like sprite and Fanta too. However, I can grab an ice coffee or tea or even a water.

When I first arrived in Paris, the first thing I received was my accreditation. It is laminated and it pretty much lives around your neck. Without your accreditation you cannot go anywhere. It is the magic key that opens the door to pretty much everything – the entry and exit to the village. The entry to the stadium. Your seating area within the stadium. Even within the village you need your accreditation to access any of the services including the dining hall.

One of the big issues voiced around Paris with these games was that of security. It is massive. It is visible. It is thorough. And I am sure I do not know the half of it.  When anyone leaves the village the bus you are on is scanned by security. The same occurs when you return – sometimes twice at different points.  To physically come in to the village you must have the aforementioned accreditation. This is checked one by one. Your bags must pass through an airport type scanner. You must also pass through a security scanner and quite often you are randomly chosen to have subsequent checks.  From my balcony I see lit boats scanning the river banks at night with bright spot lights – up and down they go. There are barricades within barricades.  The physical security within the village is also very present with guards armed with sub machine guns patrolling the area in pairs 24/7. From my elevated view I can see that all guards are within eye shot of the other pair of guards. Often there would be 4 sets of armed guards in a 100m radius.  Having said all of that, despite the massive security, it does not feel oppressive in the village. They seem to just blend in. They literally keep this magical bubble intact!

Of course outside of the village life does not just go on – it is raging. War, conflict and physical threat is taking place across different parts of the globe. War over land. Over ethnicity. Over religion. Over human rites. Over gender. Over anything that justifies the aggressive approach…. Yet here, in this magical place, the world lives in perfect harmony. We are all one. Not one better than the other. It is the embodiment of the Olympic Spirit – that of humanity. Of creating a better world that is one of peace and understanding. It is about the spirit of friendship. Of being one. It is of fair play.

And as I live here in this Olympic bubble for just two weeks, I get to experience the world for what it can be. A world of ideals, morals and mutual respect. A world where you give everything you have to realise that special dream that you, and others, have held for many years.

What a privilege to be a part of the Paris Olympic Games. A games that is showing how the world can – and should – really be. A world where a dream “is a wish your heart makes….” Both on and off the athletics track.  John Quinn August 2024.