© Stade de France ®
Macary, Zublena et Regembal
Costantini - Architects
ADAGP - Paris - 2002
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COMPETITION  RETRO |
 PARIS AND ATHLETICS: A LONGSTANDING LOVE AFFAIR
Paris 2003 Saint-Denis
Paris may not have previously played host to the World Championships in Athletics, but the City of Light has a long and distinguished tradition in track and field. Meetings of a kind were first held in the capital towards the end of the 19th century - but they were a far cry from this summer.
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| From the Olympic Games in 1924... CIO Collections Musée Olympique |
Indeed, it is difficult to imagine that 120 years ago, athletics amounted to little more than spontaneous sprints around Paris parks and railway stations! Luxembourg gardens and Saint-Lazare station were the improvised arena for the French forerunners of Maurice Greene and Muriel Hurtis as they strived to revive the vanguard Olympic sport. And those pioneers were soon rewarded for their efforts; a modern athletics movement began to emerge towards the end of the century, with Paris becoming one of the focal points for French athletics. Parisian clubs were modelled on those of the prestigious English universities. Racing Club de France and Stade Français, for example, were founded by students in 1882 and 1883 respectively and have since boasted legendary international athletes among their ranks (Géo André, Alain Mimoun, Guy Drut, Marie-José Pérec, Jean-Galfione…). For a number of decades after their creation, all of the major national and international competitions on French soil were held in these two clubs.
Paris had the honour of staging the 2nd Olympic Games in 1900 - between 14 May and 28 October! The athletics events were staged on a turf track, 500 metres long, of the Croix-Catelan into the Bois de Boulogne and met with some popular success but it was not until the 1920s that “running races” really captivated the public. With stars such as Jean Bouin and Jules Ladoumègue (both of whom have a stadium named after them in the capital) leaving all-comers trailing in their wake, French track and field really took off. The Ligue d’Ile de France d’Athlétisme was created in 1922 and had 5,309 members by the end of its first year. Then, in the summer of 1924, the Games returned to the city for a second time, with a set of world records to beat and a fierce competitive edge. The suburban town of Colombes hosted the first Olympic Village and held events in its enormous 60,000 capacity stadium, where Finnish athletes Nurmi and Ritola delighted the crowds on the way to epic victories.
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| To the Stade de France in 2003 Vandystadt |
The capital’s love of athletics was evident throughout the 20th century, thanks in large part to its world famous meetings. The inaugural Paris meet was held in 1921 on the initiative of the Stade Français. Originally held at Jean-Bouin and then Charléty stadium, it merged with the Ile de France’s other major meeting in 2000 and moved to the Stade de France in Saint-Denis. Paris has been the venue for over 120 years of world record-breaking performances too; from Michel Jazy in the 2,000 and 3,000 metres to Sergueï Bubka in the pole vault, by way of Tim Montgomery in the 100 metres (9.78) in September 2002.
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