In 100 days, more than 10,000 athletes from 206 countries will float down the Seine on boats bearing their delegation's colors to announce the start of the 30th edition of the Summer Olympics. The largest sporting event ever organized in France, the 2024 Paris Games feature the first opening ceremonies planned to take place outside of a stadium, the first surf contest to take place 10,000 miles from the host city -- and the return of crowds.
But why wait until July to get into the five-ring spirit? There's plenty of action to dive into over the next three months as the U.S. teams come into focus -- starting with wrestling trials two days from now. Prepare for a spectacular summer of Olympic sports with our top-100 Paris primer. Allons-y! -- Alyssa Roenigk
The essentials
1. Who: 206 countries will be represented, and 10,500 athletes
2. What: There will be 32 sports and 45 total disciplines within them
3. When: July 26-Aug. 11, 2024
4. Where: Paris, in 15 different Olympic venues
5. Why: Citrus, Altius, Fortius -- Communiter*
*The Olympics motto: "Faster, Higher, Strong -- Together"
Numbers to know
6. Estimated cost of the 2024 Summer Games: $10 billion. This is $3 billion less than the estimated $13 billion the Tokyo Olympics organizing committee reported was spent in 2021, after those Games were delayed for a year due to the pandemic.
7. Medal events contested this year: 329. This is the second most in a single Olympics, down 10 from the 2020 Tokyo Games, which had 339.
8. Medals the United States has won in the Summer and Winter Games: 2,985. This is the most of any country.
9. Consecutive Summer Games that Team USA has won the most medals of any country: 7. The last time the U.S. team did not earn the most medals was in the 1992 Summer Olympics, when the Unified Team of former Soviet Union republics won the most.
10. Miles the surfing venue of the 2024 Summer Games will be from Paris: 9,765. The sport will be contested in the French Polynesian island of Tahiti, at the famous surf break Teahupo'o. This is the farthest distance from a host city that an Olympic medal event has ever been contested.
11. Estimated number of in-person spectators who will watch the opening ceremonies: 300,000. For the first time in Summer Olympic history, barring any security threats, the opening ceremonies will not take place inside a stadium. Instead, they will be held on a 6-kilometer route on the Seine River.
12. Percentage of athletes participating who are women: 50. According to the IOC, the 2024 Games will be the first to have an equal number of men and women participants. In 1900, the first Games to include women, 2.2% of the athletes were women.
13. The percentage increase in athletes since the last time Paris hosted: 340. At the 1924 Olympics, 3,089 athletes competed. This year, 10,500 are estimated.
14. The number of times that Paris will have hosted the Summer Games: 3. This ties London for the most of any city. (Los Angeles will also have hosted three times when it hosts the 2028 Olympics.) Paris notably hosted the first Olympic Games held outside of Greece in 1900, and the last time the city hosted was exactly 100 years ago, in 1924.
15. The number of times France will have hosted either the Summer or Winter Games: 6. This is second most of any country, behind the United States with eight. -- ESPN Stats & Information
Dates to know
16. Opening ceremonies: July 26
17. Closing ceremonies: Aug. 11
18. Artistic gymnastics: July 27-Aug. 5
19. Swimming: July 27-Aug. 4
20. Athletics (track & field): Aug. 1-Aug. 11
21. Basketball, men's gold medal game: Aug. 10
22. Basketball, women's gold medal game: Aug. 11
23. Soccer, men's gold medal match: Aug. 9
24. Soccer, women's gold medal match: Aug. 10
25. Golf, men's final round: Aug. 4
26. Golf, women's final round: Aug. 10
27. Tennis, women's singles gold medal match: Aug. 3
28. Tennis, men's singles gold medal match: Aug. 4
29. Beach volleyball, women's gold medal match: Aug. 9
30. Beach volleyball, men's gold medal match: Aug. 10
U.S. athletes you'll know
31. The most decorated gymnast of all time, Simone Biles, 27, aims to compete at her third Games this summer -- and if she does, she could easily add to the seven Olympic medals she already has. After taking a break after Tokyo, Biles returned to the sport in 2023 in triumphant fashion, winning the all-around at the 2023 worlds. Biles is the Olympic favorite in the all-around, vault and floor, and she could lead the dominant U.S. team to another gold there as well.
32. Another GOAT likely to be in Paris, 27-year-old Katie Ledecky has 10 Olympic medals from her three previous Games, and has broken 16 world records in her career. Ledecky has dominated the longer distances for more than a decade and there's a lot more history on the line for her in 2024 -- more on that below.
33. With five Olympic gold medals in 2021 (and two from the previous Games), Caeleb Dressel, 27, drew comparisons to Michael Phelps in Tokyo -- which he soundly dismissed. But Dressel has had a tough few years since then. He withdrew from the 2022 world championships citing health reasons, took a nine-month break from the sport, and wasn't in top shape to qualify to the 2023 world championships. Now, he is showing signs that he may be back. On Thursday, he won the 100-meter freestyle at the last Tyr Pro Swim Series meet before Olympic trials, with his best time since the 2022 worlds.
34. Last March, Noah Lyles, 26, took gold in the 100, 200 and 4x100-meter relay at the 2023 world championships, becoming the first man since Usain Bolt in 2015 to complete what's called "the sprint treble." With six world gold medals in all, the 200-meter bronze medalist from Tokyo has eyes on Olympic gold in Paris.
35. Sha'Carri Richardson, 24, won the 100 meters at the 2021 Olympic trials, then was declared ineligible to compete at the Tokyo Games after testing positive for cannabis after that race. Two years later, she won the 100 meters at the 2023 worlds in a stacked field, cementing her status as the one to beat at the Olympics. If she does, she will become the first American woman to win since Gail Devers did it back-to-back in 1992 and 1996.
36. In 2021, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, 24, ran a world and Olympic record time of 51.46 to win gold in the 400-meter hurdles in Tokyo over teammate Dalilah Muhammad. McLaughlin-Levrone then broke her own world record twice more, at the 2022 USATF championships and again to earn the world title at the 2022 world championships. She also has world and Olympic golds with the 4x400 relay team from the 2020 Olympics and 2022 worlds.
37. Will collegiate superstar and No. 1 draft pick Caitlin Clark play for Team USA in Paris? That's the million-dollar question. Clark, 22, was not included in the 3x3 training camp that will start Wednesday, but was invited to the 5-on-5 team training camp earlier this month. (She was unable to attend because Iowa was competing in the Final Four.) The Americans will be going for their eighth consecutive team gold medal, with a veteran-heavy squad, but it's not unprecedented for a player to make the team straight out of college. (See Diana Taurasi in 2004, Candace Parker in 2008 and Breanna Stewart in 2016.)
38. One of few American athletes who has already qualified to the Paris team, 31-year-old Carissa Moore, was the first woman to win gold in surfing's debut in Tokyo. The five-time World Surf League world champion has stepped away from the world tour, but looks to defend her Olympic title this summer before retiring from competitive surfing.
39. Twenty-year-old Coco Gauff was the first American tennis player to clinch her Olympic spot, and the world No. 3 will be a threat for gold in both singles and doubles. Gauff made her first Grand Slam final at the 2022 French Open, playing in the same venue at Roland Garros where Olympic tennis will be held. She qualified to the Tokyo Games at age 17, but had to withdraw five days beforehand when she tested positive for COVID.
40. While the Olympic roster won't be named until late June, 2019 World Cup champion Rose Lavelle, 28, is deemed to be a lock for it. She scored three goals during the Americans' run to the title in 2019, including one in the final. Though she has struggled with injury lately, she is considered one of the best technical players on the squad. The USWNT is looking to return to the top of the sport after a disappointing bronze medal in Tokyo and a shocking round of 16 upset at the 2023 World Cup. -- Amy Van Deusen
And those you might not know yet -- but will want to
41. Shilese Jones, 21, has helped lead the women's gymnastics team to back-to-back world titles and she won silver in the all-around in 2022 and bronze last year. She is considered to be one of the best in the world on bars and has a chance to win multiple medals during what is expected to be her debut Olympic appearance.
42. Competing in his first world championships in October, 19-year-old Fred Richard lifted the men's gymnastics team to a third-place finish and took home bronze in the all-around -- becoming the first American man to win an all-around medal since 2010 and the youngest American man to ever win an individual medal.
43. A 2020 Olympian who finished in sixth place in the long jump final, Tara Davis-Woodhall has since become the 2023 world silver medalist in the event and claimed the indoor world title earlier this year. The 24-year-old has a joint YouTube channel with her husband, Paralympic track star Hunter Woodhall, that has 800,000 subscribers.
44. The three-time reigning world champion in the 110-meter hurdles, 26-year-old Grant Holloway has won just about every title possible -- except Olympic gold. Holloway finished in second place at the Tokyo Games and has been a man on a mission ever since -- breaking records, collecting new hardware and cementing his spot as a favorite in Paris.
45. Long believed to be one of the future superstars of the USWNT, a string of injuries forced Mallory (Pugh) Swanson, now 25, to be sidelined for the 2020 Games as well as the 2023 World Cup. But Swanson is back and healthy and she will look to help the American team earn its first gold medal since 2012.
46. Still a revered figure for college basketball fans 13 years after his decorated career at BYU came to an end, many might not realize that 35-year-old Jimmer Fredette started playing 3x3 in 2022. Since then, he has led the country to a FIBA 3x3 AmeriCup gold medal, a second-place finish at the 2023 FIBA World Cup and helped the American men clinch an Olympic berth in the sport for the first time.
47. The youngest member of the American team at the Tokyo Games as a 15-year-old, Katie Grimes, now 18, became the first person to qualify for the U.S. squad for the 2024 Olympics -- in any sport -- after winning bronze in the open-water 10K at the 2023 world championships. Grimes, who also earned silver in the 400-meter medley at the event for the second straight year and was the 2022 runner-up in the 1,500-meter freestyle, will look to also clinch her spot in the pool at the Olympic trials in June.
48. No stranger to breaking records, Carson Foster, 22, has competed in the past two Olympic trials, but he finally seems to be in a position to make the Olympic team this summer. Since missing out on Tokyo, Foster has become one of the best individual medley swimmers in the world, and his rivalry with Leon Marchand of France in both the 200-meter and 400-meter races could become one of the most-talked-about storylines in Paris.
49. After leading the American volleyball team to its first-ever gold medal in Tokyo, many believed that veteran Jordan Larson, who already owned two previous Olympic medals, would retire soon after. But she had other ideas. Now, the 37-year-old is trying to make one last Olympic team and help the United States become just the fourth country to win back-to-back golds in the event. If she does make the final roster, she will become the second-oldest indoor volleyball player in Olympic history.
50. Better known as "B-boy Victor," top-ranked American break-dancer Victor Montalvo won the world championship title in September. Montalvo, 29, will now try to earn an Olympic medal in the sport's first and perhaps only time as an Olympic sport, as it will not be included in 2028. -- D'Arcy Maine
Upcoming U.S Olympic trials and qualifying
51. Wrestling trials, State College, Pennsylvania: April 19-20
52. Final triathlon selection event, Yokohama, Japan: May 11
53. French Open, last event of tennis qualifying, Paris: May 26-June 9
54. U.S. Open, last event of men's golf qualifying, Pinehurst, North Carolina: June 13-16
55. Swimming trials, Indianapolis: June 15-23
56. Diving trials, Knoxville, Tennessee: June 17-23
57. KPMG Women's PGA Championship, last event of women's golf qualifying, Sammamish, Washington: June 20-23
58. Track and field trials, Eugene, Oregon: June 21-30
59. Gymnastics trials, Minneapolis: June 27-30
60. Final skateboarding qualifiers published via world rankings: June 24
61. Paralympics swimming, Minneapolis: June 27-29
62. Paralympics track & field: Miramar, Florida: July 18-20
International athletes to watch
63. In February, Canadian phenom Summer McIntosh ended Ledecky's 13-year unbeaten streak in the 800-meter freestyle. Even wilder: The 17-year-old finished six seconds ahead of the American superstar. Ledecky is the three-time defending Olympic champ in the event, setting up an underwater battle to watch in Paris.
64. At the 2023 world championships in October, Brazilian gymnast Rebeca Andrade, 24, won her second world vault title and placed second on floor and in the all-around. Andrade is the reigning Olympic vault champ and will look to go back-to-back in Paris, too.
65. Can anyone beat Japanese gymnast Daiki Hashimoto in the all-around? That's the question that hangs over Paris. The reigning Olympic and world all-around champion, Hashimoto, 22, will attempt to become only the fourth man in history to win back-to-back Olympic all-around titles.
66. British diver Tom Daley, who competed in his first Olympics at 14, won gold in Tokyo in his fourth -- and then went viral for his poolside knitting. While in Tokyo, Daley fashioned an Olympic-themed sweater and even knitted a cute bag to hold his medal. Now 29, he's hoping to make just as big (or small) of a splash in Paris.
67. Spurs rookie superstar Victor Wembanyama, the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NBA draft, has said he will play for France in Paris. The 20-year-old, 7-foot-2 Parisian will be one of the most visible stars in the city this summer and plans to return to San Antonio with gold.
68. Japan's Momiji Nishiya is the top-ranked women's street skater in the world and won gold in the event at the 2023 X Games in Chiba, Japan. She also took bronze at X Games California in Ventura last summer. This summer, the 16-year-old leads a strong contingent of Japanese women skaters into Paris.
69. Local Tahitian surfer Vahine Fierro, 24, will represent France in Paris. Fierro secured her Olympic spot nearly a year ago and her local knowledge of the Teahupo'o break helps her be the gold medal favorite.
70. It's almost comical to call a guy who spent 36 weeks as the No. 1 tennis player in the world someone to watch, but Paris will mark Spanish sensation Carlos Alcaraz's first Olympics. And he is one to watch. The two-time Grand Slam champion turns 21 in May and has said he would prize Olympic gold over winning his first French Open title this summer.
71. Jamaica's Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, once the "fastest woman in the world," will compete in her final 100-meter race in Paris, as she announced she will retire after this Olympics, the fifth of her career. The 37-year-old three-time Olympic gold medalist said she wants to spend more time at home with her husband and 6-year-old son, Zion -- after one more run at gold.
72. In 2022, reigning freestyle BMX world champion Kieran Reilly became the first rider to land a triple flair. Although he landed the trick on an indoor ramp and not in competition, video of his efforts set the internet on fire. Last year, the 22-year-old British favorite for Olympic gold also won the European Games and took silver in Park Best Trick at X Games California in Ventura. -- Alyssa Roenigk
The new sport
73. A centerpiece of hip-hop culture for decades, breaking (breakdancing) makes its Olympic debut in Paris with American stars like Victor Montalvo and Sunny Choi leading the way. There will be 16 competitors in both the men's and women's events, with breakers competing in head-to-head battles. -- Sam Borden
In last night's Men's Breaking competition, Team USA Victor Montalvo took home GOLD! 🥇
— The World Games 2022 Birmingham (@TWG2022) July 11, 2022
🥇 Victor Bernudez Montalvo 🇺🇸
🥈 Jeffrey Louis 🇺🇸
🥉 Shigeyuki Nakarai 🇯🇵#MedalMoment #WeAreTheWorldGames #NewGenofSports pic.twitter.com/TVeGGpWlkm
The almost-new sports
74. Spins, grinds, barspins and tailwhips are among the tricks that riders attempt in BMX freestyle, and Britain's Charlotte Worthington made history in Tokyo when she won gold after becoming the first woman to land a 360 degree backflip in competition. Even more impressive? She landed it after falling badly trying to pull it off on her first run.
75. As mentioned, the famous waves of the Teahupo'o surf break in the French territory of Polynesia will host the surfing competition in the sport's sophomore Olympics -- a decision that has spurred local opposition after construction plans were released that locals say may damage the coral reef.
76. There's a good chance Japan will continue as a dominant force in skateboarding after winning three of four golds, and five of 12 medals overall, three years ago in Tokyo. But while most skaters specialize in one of the two disciplines -- street or park -- American Jagger Eaton is a unicorn in that he might qualify (and could even medal) in both.
77. In its Olympic debut in Tokyo, sport climbing had its three disciplines grouped into one all-around medal event -- a controversial choice in the bouldering world, to say the least. In Paris, things will be different, as bouldering will combine with lead to be one event, while speed climbing will be on its own. That's good for 18-year-old American Sam Watson, who will be trying to follow up winning the Pan Am Games with a strong Olympic showing.
78. The U.S. men's team in 3x3 basketball features Jimmer Fredette as well as Canyon Barry, son of NBA Hall of Famer Rick Barry. But for those hoops fans who also love public radio, the team's true star might be Kareem Maddox: In order to focus full-time on the Olympics, he left a job as a producer of NPR's beloved show "All Things Considered." -- Sam Borden
A new addition
79. Because of a 2022 decision by artistic swimming's governing body, nations competing in the team event in Paris can (but aren't required to) include up to two men on their eight-person teams. Bill May, 45, is on the U.S. team, which qualified for the Games for the first time since 2008. "I've been waiting for 35 years [to be an Olympian], which is longer than a lot of my teammates have been alive," May said. -- Alyssa Roenigk
Three sports you won't see in Paris
80-82. Karate, baseball and softball. All three were contested in Tokyo in 2021, but were dropped for Paris. Baseball and softball will be back in 2028.
Must-watch events, from the athletes
83. "I want to see everything. I love meeting athletes and creating relationships with them, and it's super fun being able to support them at the Games. Last time, we didn't stay in the village, so staying in the village and interacting with people is something I'm really looking forward to. I want to see track, beach volleyball. I'm really interested in breakdancing." -- Suni Lee, gymnastics
84. "Race walking. At my first Olympics, I saw them and it's just amazing. The technique that goes into that? It's fascinating. I couldn't do that, no way. Not at all." -- Jordan Larson, volleyball
85. "I love tennis, I love swimming, I love gymnastics. I'm down to get the job done [with soccer], but I love watching those sports, too. Hopefully I can see some of them." -- Crystal Dunn, soccer
86. "Diving. When I was at the Pan American Games, we saw a lot of diving on TV and it was awesome, so it would be great to see that in person." -- Kayla DiCello, gymnastics
87. "Gymnastics. Growing up, I mostly watched gymnastics at the Olympics, and figure skating. I used to do gymnastics when I was younger, and then I quit because I didn't want to wear a leotard." -- Minna Stess, skateboarding
88. "I'm not going to get to experience much about Paris because our tournament goes through the whole Games. It'll just be game, training, game, training, but I'm excited for my family to be there since they couldn't come to Tokyo. But I'll be cheering for my friends in wrestling, crew, basketball. I've been watching March Madness, I watched the WNBA draft and I'm excited to see how those women do." -- Ashleigh Johnson, water polo
89. "I'm excited for swimming but also breaking. I cannot wait to see what that's all about. I'm 100 percent a fan of that." -- Keira D'Amato, track & field
90. "[My partner] Gerek and I are so aggressive when it comes to enjoying the Games -- in Rio, we saw like 15 other events after we finished competing. In Paris, I want to see some of the newer events, like climbing and breaking, but I also think we might pick some based on the venues. There are so many cool venues -- like some of the equestrian venues look amazing, so I think we'll probably do that." -- Lee Kiefer, fencing
Milestones to watch for
91. If Katie Ledecky makes the Olympic team as expected, she could become the most decorated U.S. women's Olympian of all time. Entering with 10 total medals, if she wins three medals of any color she will pass swimmers Jenny Thompson, Natalie Coughlin and Dara Torres, who are tied for the most with 12. If Ledecky adds two gold medals to her current tally of seven, she will pass Thompson's record of eight.
92. Ledecky also has a chance to pass former Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina for the most gold medals by any female Olympian in history. Latynina won nine golds in her career, which spanned from 1956 to 1964.
93. Simone Biles is expected to make her third consecutive Olympic team, and if she does, she needs to earn only one medal to break the tie (at seven) that she currently holds with Shannon Miller for the most Olympic medals earned by any U.S. gymnast.
94. If Biles, the 2016 Olympic all-around champion, wins the all-around title in Paris, she will become the sixth straight U.S. gymnast to win and the first gymnast ever to win two nonconsecutive all-around titles.
95. If Diana Taurasi is named to the U.S. women's basketball squad and wins a gold medal, she will break the tie she holds with American teammate Sue Bird for the most golds of any basketball player, currently at five.
96. If Kevin Durant earns a gold medal with Team USA, he will break the tie of three gold medals that he currently holds with Carmelo Anthony, and have the most Olympic golds of any male basketball player.
97. Since NBA players began playing in the Olympics in 1992, Team USA has won gold in seven of eight Summer Games. But it will be pushed by the host nation of France, who finished runner-up to the U.S. at the 2020 Olympics. Only twice has the host nation ever won the gold medal in men's basketball -- and both times it was the U.S., in 1984 and 1996.
98. Of the five tennis players in the Open Era to win 20 or more Grand Slam titles (Novak Djokovic, Serena Williams, Steffi Graf, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer), Djokovic has won the most majors (24) -- and is the only one who has never won Olympic gold. He'll likely have his chance in Paris at age 37.
99. If France's Kylian Mbappe plays in the Olympics, he has the chance to join an exclusive club. Only 13 male players have ever won the FIFA World Cup and an Olympic gold medal, and only two have done it since World War II: Argentina's Angel Di Maria and Lionel Messi. Both won 2008 Olympic gold and the 2022 World Cup.
100. The Jamaican women have dominated the 100 meters for the past four Olympics. If Elaine Thompson-Herah, the two-time defending gold medalist, wins a third gold, she will join fellow Jamaican Usain Bolt as the only athletes to win the 100 meters three times. But it could also be Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce who joins that list. If she takes the title in Paris, she will earn her third gold, after winning the race in 2008 and 2012. -- ESPN Stats & Information