The athletes competing at the Paris Summer Games will have plenty of condoms, but they will not have air conditioning.
“We designed these buildings so that they would be comfortable places to live in in the summer, in 2024 and later on, and we don’t need air conditioning in these buildings because we oriented the facades so that they wouldn’t get too much sun during the summer, and the facades, the insulation is really efficient,” said Yann Krysinski, who is directing the service of infrastructure for the Games.
A replica of the Eiffel Tower with the logo of the 2024 Olympic Games surrounded by official mascots for the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games is displayed inside the official store entirely dedicated to the 2024 Olympic Games on November 15, 2022, in Paris, France. (Chesnot/Getty Images)
The buildings housing the athletes will apparently have some sort of cooling system, however. According to Reuters, cooled water will be circulated in the floors of the rooms to generate coolness.
The decision to forego traditional air conditioning is borne of the organizing committee’s desire to make the 2024 Paris Games record-breaking in terms of reducing the event’s carbon footprint.
The logo of the Paris 2024 Olympics is pictured during the unveiling of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games Medals At Paris 2024 Headquarters on February 08, 2024, in Paris, France. Paris will host the Summer Olympics from July 26 to August 11, 2024. (Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)
Once the Olympic Games are over, planners intend for the buildings once used to house athletes to become housing for up to 6,000 Parisians. The attempt to make carbon footprint history does not come without risks. Some 5,000 people died in France last year due to oppressive heat, and forecasters have claimed there is a possibility of similarly sweltering conditions this summer as well.