With the Tokyo Games coming to an end, the Olympic baton is ready to be passed to the next Summer Olympic host city, Paris.  In three years the 2024 Olympics will take place in and around “the city of lights” and the Organizing Committee is planning a special treat for cyclists, an Olympic Gran Fondo.   

The plan is to hold a Gran Fondo on the Olympic road course for all cyclists on the same day as the Men’s Road Race.  The course would be completely closed, allowing 10,000 or more riders to participate and experience the thrill of Olympic victory when they cross the finish line, possibly on the famed Champs-Élysées.

Tony Estanguet, president of the Paris 2024 Organizing Committee, and International Cycling Union  president David Lappartient are the driving force behind the mass-participation Olympic Gran Fondo.  Of the event Estanquet said, “We are preparing some nice surprises for road races, because Paris is Paris and we will create a truly spectacular track.”

The Paris games will run from 26 July to 11 August 2024 with the Paralympics 28 August to 8 September 2024.   The exact date for the Olympic Gran Fondo is still to be determined, but given the popularity of cycling in France the first mass-participation event for Olympic fans is sure to quickly sell-out.   

PHOTOS: 2024 Paris Organizing Committee

GFDN Worldwide Gran Fondo Calendar