In August 2024, I was one of the 45,000 volunteers helping to bring the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games to life. From the application, the training, the adrenaline of the competition day to the emotion of the final group picture, it was an unforgettable experience.

I am immensely proud of having been a witness but also a participant of this fantastic adventure that you only get to live once in a lifetime.

Do you want to apply to become yourself a volunteer for upcoming Games (Milan-Cortina 2026, Los Angeles 2028, French Alps 2030, Brisbane 2032)? I hope this article will convince you to do so!

What is the role of the volunteers at the Olympic and Paralympic Games?

In addition to the dozen of thousands of the people working for the Games in various capacities, it is not possible for the Games – the biggest event in the world- to exist without the volunteers. In Paris 2024, we were 45,000 and a crucial part of “ensuring an exceptional experience for everyone involved in the Games”. When your country or city hosts the Games, you welcome the world. Thousands of athletes, their coaches, and their delegations come as part of the competition. Millions of people travel to witness this event as spectator (for the Paris Games more than 12 millions tickets were sold, and several events had spectators without tickets on open air sites). Under this general mission, the Volunteers specific roles varied widely from welcoming spectators, setting up competition sites, taking care of athletes and officials.

Usually dressed in bright colors to be easily identifiable from all, they are an integral part of the organisation and the experience of the Games – some even said that they are along with the athletes, the Soul of the Games.

What was the recruitment process like to volunteer at the Olympics Games?

The application process opened in March 2023 (15 months before the start of the Games!) and you had about 6 weeks to apply. You needed to speak French or English and be available for a minimum of 10 days. You filled in a questionnaire about your motivations and went through a test, to be able to identified the mission that would fit the best your personality. This was a nice touch, so that every volunteer could feel fulfilled, excited and at ease in his or her role.

Around 300,000 (!) people applied and 6 months later the results started to come in. On November 28th, I received an email “Paris 2024 – Discover our proposal of mission”. To my surprise and delight, I was accepted and I even got selected for the mission that I marked as my preferred, working at the service of athletes at the para triathlon.

In March 2024, the organisation hosted a volunteer convention, a meeting for all volunteers to meet and kick off the programme. It wasn’t possible for me to attend in person but I could watch the replay. One of the highlight was to discover the uniforms! The reactions were unanimous, the uniform was very cool, practical and looking nice whatever your size. Decathlon who was the designer and manufacturer (also one sponsor of the Games) really did an amazing job. At that point it really felt like the countdown had started.

We were also given access to a variety of online content to getting us engaged in the project for the Games, prepare us for our mission and learning more about interactions with people with disabilities.

Where did you work? What did you do there?

I was at the site of the triathlon on the Bridge Alexandre III, in the heart of Paris. We were about 300 on that site and were sharing part of the venue with the team at The Grand Palais (hosting taekwondo and fencing).

Along 15 other volunteers, I was part of a team at “the service of the athletes”. My mission consisted in guiding the athletes on site, giving them information, making sure everything was clean and at the right place in their lounge and taking care of their equipment (bags, bikes and race wheelchairs) before and after competing. On competition day we ended it serving a total of 80 athletes, taking care of more than 80 bikes, hand bikes and tandems and 20 racing wheelchairs.

Some of my colleagues were volunteers also during the Olympic Games, some of us came only for the Paralympics. In our team, the final duration of our volunteering mission varied between 3 and more than 20 days depending of the missions and availability.

In the case of the para triathlon the original mission was 6 days but weather conditions threw in a couple of curve balls and the planning got adjusted a few times. I worked only 3 days for the para triathlon. The para triathlon schedule consisted of a swim familiarization in the Seine and coach briefing day, a swim, bike and run familiarisation and a full on race day (initially 2 days but regrouped into one).

What was the difference between the Olympics and Paralympics Games?

The Paralympic Games always take place after the Olympic Games and with a few weeks in between. It is due to logistic constraints of having to adapt the sites and the Olympic village. Doing both simultaneously would require such an investment that it is just not viable.

Paris 2024 had a strong commitment on elevating the Paralympics. The same competitions sites in the heart of Paris that wowed the world were used for the Paralympics, just like the Olympic Games, with the same level of service to the public or to the athletes. But clearly the logistics of the Paralympics is much higher. A bit less than half the number of athletes, less disciplines but more categories (not only male or female) means a higher number of competitions.

Just with the example of the triathlon this became very clear: a total of 11 competitions (vs 3 during the Olympics men/women/relay). And a strong realisation: If you thought you needed loads of stuff for a triathlon, try para triathlon! Everyday wheelchair, racing wheelchairs, prosthetic limbs, racing blades, tandems, adapted bikes… the list feels endless, and also from a human perspective: guides, and personnel handlers which are non-existent for the Olympic Games. More people, more kit. And sometimes unusual scenes: athlete “looking for [their] leg, left it in transition!”, prosthetic arms left on a chair, homemade solutions to adapt the bikes to specific needs. But our fantastic team was there to ensure all run as smoothly as possible.

Did you get to see some events?

The event(s) you work on are probably the ones you will see the least as you are busy with your tasks. But I bought a few tickets for evenings and days off, and most volunteers did the same. The organisation also surprised us with a free ticket to watch the para athletics at the Stade de France.

Are volunteers compensated? Is it hard work?

No, as the name indicates the 45,000 Paris 2024 volunteers gave their time on a voluntary basis. I heard of a minority of volunteers in the framework of some international exchanges that were helped with accommodations. In the case of almost everyone else, it is on the volunteers to get to Paris and find a solution to stay during the Games. There were obviously lots of Parisian volunteering and many other (myself included) that stayed at a friend’s or at a family member –thank you sis for letting me sleep on your couch!. We got free transportation within the Paris area for the duration of the games and one meal a day. We were allowed to keep our uniforms too.

The missions and individual tasks are important but thanks to the extensive planning done upfront, the volunteers’ job is fairly straight forward. We were enough volunteers so that very rarely being left alone with one task and we were able to catch our breath during rush periods. In case of doubt it was very easy to ask our team leader. If you come with good vibes, energy (and in the case of outdoor events, flexibility!) you will have a great time.

What will you remember of this experience?

A new word seem to have made its apparition in France “J.O.stalgic” (i.e. Jeux Olympics / Olympic Games nostalgic). After months (years for some) of anticipation, and two times 2 weeks of spectacle, performance, high emotions and strong community feeling, I can understand the feeling. Being in the front of your TV, in stadiums, on the side of the road and watching the best athletes in the world competing into a festive atmosphere was incredible. Having the chance to run on the Olympic route of the marathon during the Marathon Pour Tous was exceptional. But being a volunteer at the Games, and playing a small part in the success of this fantastic epopee is likely to remain my strongest memory.

It was an unique experience to live the Games from the inside. I will remember being first eye witness of athletes’ emotions: joy, satisfaction, deception or pre race nerves. The adrenaline waking up at 03:20am to check if the race was on and we were gonna put on a show. The ambiance in our volunteer groups, how magic the competition site was. Some of the exchanges I had with athletes, coach or staff, everyone was always very thankful of our help even though they had race pressure to deal with. 

In general, I was surprised by the interactions with the local population. As French, we are usually renowned for being rude or grumpy but I got so many positive interactions from spectators or even just locals when wearing my uniform. At 5:00am, cycling through town to join the competition site, and nodding at other volunteers on their way too. The Police, moving their barriers to let you pass ; or this Parisian put down his car window to wish me a good day, kids waving at you in the subway. I also received several messages of accountancies thanking me for volunteering at the Games. Clearly, you got this impression of being part of something big, unique, which brought lots of joy and positive energy. The French were very grateful for the volunteers’ work! But to be honest, it’s my heart that is full with gratitude. I will have stars in my eyes while reminiscing this experience for the years to come!