The intimacy ban in the Olympic Village will be lifted for the Paris 2024 Games, marking a dramatic departure from the limitations enforced during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Officials are getting ready to give out 300,000 condoms to the 14,250 athletes who are anticipated to live there. Laurent Michaud, the director of the Olympic Village, stated that this action highlights a return to promoting a friendly environment among competitors while simultaneously emphasising health and safety.
Why was the ban imposed, and why is it returning?
Athletes were encouraged to keep a considerable physical distance from one another to prevent the spread of COVID-19, and the Tokyo Olympics implemented a restriction on athlete intimacy. But with the global pandemic slowly abating, the Paris Games will likely adopt a more transparent approach to athlete relations.
Michaud emphasised the need to foster an atmosphere where athletes feel at ease and motivated in his talk with Sky News. “It is very important that the conviviality here is something big,” he said, highlighting initiatives to make the Olympic Village a friendly place for participants.
Although the Village will rejoice over the return of intimacy, some limitations still apply, most notably the ban on champagne inside the village limits. Though he promised more than 350 metres of buffet with international cuisines and French specialities, Michaud reassured players that they would have plenty of opportunity to savour champagne and other delights in Paris itself.
Supply condoms intended to raise awareness of HIV and AIDS
The decision to supply condoms is a continuation of an Olympic custom that began with the Seoul Games in 1988 and is intended to raise awareness of HIV and AIDS. In Tokyo, there is a restriction on intimacy, but organisers distributed 150,000 condoms nevertheless. With an astounding $2.1 billion allocated to construction projects, the Paris Games seeks to establish new benchmarks for both the scope of the event and the well-being of its attendees.
