For the second Sunday of the Olympic Games, there are a bevy of medal-awarding events to look out for. Let's not waste time then, and start counting down these finals!
Marchand, Marchons.
Today is the last day of Léon Marchand's glorious Olympic season. The 22-year-old French quadruple gold medalist will be lending his powerful strokes to the French 4x100m Medley relay team. Should his team win, his American fans will no doubt call it "Marchand madness:" The first of his many punny nicknames, which he picked up during his time swimming for Arizona State University.
Over the Paris 2024 Olympic season, however, it's been the French public's turn to play on his last name. Firstly, cheering crowds have seized on how much "Marchand, Marchand" can sound like marchons, marchons – lyrics from the French national anthem, La Marseillaise. Yet as the medley swimmer has racked up the wins, French fans' dreams of his Olympic glory have led to his most recent epithet: Marchand de Rêves – the "Merchant of (sweet) Dreams."
In men's Gymnastics, be sure to watch French athlete Samir Aït Saïd, on the rings. At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Aït Saïd suffered a horrific double-tibia fracture, described as "a leg like a Z" (best not to Google it). Yet that was not enough to stop him, as he starred as the French delegation's flagbearer for the Tokyo Olympics, and reached 4th place in the rings events. Let's hope his third Olympic Games cement his comeback with a medal.
The final day for archery has arrived, with events from the Men's Individual Round of 16 to the Finals. Keep an eye open (but not both, to enhance your aim) for French archers Thomas Chirault and Baptiste Addis who have a shot (pun very much intended) at the Gold.
Speaking of shooting, if the past week's dynamic duo of 10m Air Pistol events (see below) shot through your heart (and they're to blame), the Women's Skeet Shooting final is on today, as well as qualification events for Men's Rapid Fire Pistol, which French shooter Jean Quiquampoix won at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
South Korea sent someone right from the set of the Matrix
— Azeemuddin Ahmed, MD, MBA (@TheAzeemAhmed) August 1, 2024
Turkey sent my high school driver’s ed teacher, Mr. Hansen pic.twitter.com/VrBfmNn6Uv
Finally, in Tennis, we have come to the end of a Men's Singles season that saw Rafael Nadal, despite having borne the Olympic torch, dethroned. Will Novak Djokovic rise up to the challenge of his rival? Or maybe Nadal's unfortunate Doubles partner, Carlos Alcaraz, who won the French Open in May?
For an indoor activity, today could be the perfect chance to hit up one of Paris' world-famous museums. Indeed, most are open Sundays, closing instead on Mondays or Tuesdays. Moreover, with Parisians having mostly left for the summer holidays, and Olympic spectators packing fan zones for the day's slew of finals, the Louvre and its ilk should be uncrowded.
After such a glorious week of sport and art, you deserve a cocktail or two. Paris has jumped aboard the mixology wave, starting with the iconic Experimental Cocktail Club, which brought the American bartending style to the City of Lights.
Then came Moonshiner, Paris' first speakeasy, hidden behind the stockroom door of a pizzeria; followed by Dirty Dick's, which introduced tiki cocktails to this city, so far removed from the Hawaiian waves.
Since then, cocktail bars have flourished around Paris, ranging from Le Syndicat, a trendy urban hangout where bartenders play French rap while they mix French spirits, to Bisou, where there is no menu – only your favorite tastes and the mixologist's imagination!
However, buyer beware, these drinks are not lightly dosed, and will quickly have your head spinning (like a record, baby)!
For visitors from former British colonies (from Downunder to Over the Pond), Paris' refusal to conform to a grid layout can often cause fits. While you could navigate with Google Maps or CityMapper, you risk losing sight of the architectural beauty around you. So, here are two tips for a phone-free Paris wandering experience.
First, follow the métro lines. Paris is crisscrossed by 14 métro lines, and following them above ground is made easier by the handy métro line maps outside every station. Because there are only 570m between two stations (on average), you can just walk down a street you see on the map, and then check the map at the next station 5-10 minutes later!
Secondly, try to imagine the layout of Paris as a series of circular hubs (Bastille, République, Montparnasse, Concorde) linked by spokes – the city's famous boulevards. Viewing Paris this way helps you easily travel between Olympic hotpots, but also shows how to avoid the crowds: Just hop off the boulevard and wander through cute little streets!
Need an ally to navigate the Olympics? Whether you're in the French capital for the sport, the culture or the food, Le Monde's English edition has got you covered with a handy guide full of practical information and secret tips.