Can Paris 2024 Be the Greenest Olympic Games Yet? 

Paris 2024 Olympics - Olympic Village Torch Relay - Olympic Village, Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Matthieu Garel, Emma Terho, Chair of the IOC Athletes' Commission, Ban Ki-moon, former Secretary-General of the United Nations, Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization and Filippo Grandi, Commissioner of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees pose before the Olympic Village Torch Relay. (Reuters)
Paris 2024 Olympics - Olympic Village Torch Relay - Olympic Village, Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Matthieu Garel, Emma Terho, Chair of the IOC Athletes' Commission, Ban Ki-moon, former Secretary-General of the United Nations, Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization and Filippo Grandi, Commissioner of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees pose before the Olympic Village Torch Relay. (Reuters)
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Can Paris 2024 Be the Greenest Olympic Games Yet? 

Paris 2024 Olympics - Olympic Village Torch Relay - Olympic Village, Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Matthieu Garel, Emma Terho, Chair of the IOC Athletes' Commission, Ban Ki-moon, former Secretary-General of the United Nations, Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization and Filippo Grandi, Commissioner of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees pose before the Olympic Village Torch Relay. (Reuters)
Paris 2024 Olympics - Olympic Village Torch Relay - Olympic Village, Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Matthieu Garel, Emma Terho, Chair of the IOC Athletes' Commission, Ban Ki-moon, former Secretary-General of the United Nations, Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization and Filippo Grandi, Commissioner of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees pose before the Olympic Village Torch Relay. (Reuters)

With medals made of iron salvaged from Eiffel Tower refurbishments and stadium seating of recycled plastic, Paris 2024 aims to be the greenest Olympics yet.

The case for action is clear as scientists have said intense heat linked to man-made carbon emissions is a growing risk to competitors at the world's largest sporting event and beyond.

Paris 2024 has pledged to reduce its carbon emissions by half compared to the average emitted during the London and Rio Summer Games.

Here are some of Paris 2024's efforts towards meeting that goal.

CONSTRUCTION

For many people, Olympic stadiums such as Rio's Olympic Aquatic Centre that have failed to find a purpose after the Games symbolize extravagance.

Paris 2024 has sought to minimize new construction.

Almost all venues use existing or temporary sites, often relying on the city's landmarks as backdrops.

Organizers say the replacement of concrete with low carbon building materials, including sustainably-sourced wood, will reduce the Olympic Village's emissions by 30% compared to what the organizers referred to as conventional projects without giving details.

Permanent infrastructure accounted for 73% of the estimated 467,000 metric tons of carbon emissions generated by the Olympic Games between 2018 and 2023.

In addition, 11,000 seats at the only two purpose-built arenas for Paris 2024 are made out of recycled plastic.

TRANSPORT

Along with construction, transport is expected to be one of the biggest sources of emissions during the Games.

Organizers have said they will use low-carbon vehicles to ferry around athletes and official visitors and that all venues are accessible by bike, foot or public transport.

However, Paris is not tackling the emissions generated by spectators travelling to the Games - such emissions made up almost a third (28%) of the 3.3 million metric tons of carbon emitted by the London 2012 Games.

RENEWABLE POWER

Paris 2024 has said its venues will use renewable energy sources via the grid, rather than the diesel-powered generators often used at sporting venues.

Some 5,000 meters squared of solar panels have been installed on the roof of the Aquatics Center and Olympic Village, and a 400-meter squared floating solar farm set up on the River Seine.

Meanwhile, the Olympic Village has a cooling system that draws water from underground rather than air conditioning.

State-owned utility EDF told Reuters it would provide guarantees of origin to link the energy used by the Games to six wind and two solar production sites in France.

CARBON OFFSETS

To make up for the some of the emissions that are not being avoided, notably spectator air travel, Paris 2024 has purchased 1.3 million carbon credits. Each credit represents one ton of emissions reduced or removed elsewhere - from projects protecting biodiversity-rich forests in Kenya and Guatemala and improving access to clean cooking in Kenya, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Organizers are also spending 600,000 euros ($651,720.00) on four forestry projects in France to sequester 14,500 tons of greenhouse gases.

Although carbon credits can channel money to climate-friendly projects, often in the Global South, some credit-generating projects have been scrutinized over false claims about the benefits they deliver.

Paris 2024 had positioned itself as the first climate-positive Games in reference to plans to remove, reduce or offset more emissions than it generates. It has since dropped such claims, pledging instead to reduce its climate impact and support climate projects.



Hospital: Vonn Had Surgery on Broken Leg from Olympics Crash

This handout video grab from IOC/OBS shows US Lindsey Vonn crashing during the women's downhill event at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games on February 8, 2026. (Photo by Handout / various sources / AFP)
This handout video grab from IOC/OBS shows US Lindsey Vonn crashing during the women's downhill event at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games on February 8, 2026. (Photo by Handout / various sources / AFP)
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Hospital: Vonn Had Surgery on Broken Leg from Olympics Crash

This handout video grab from IOC/OBS shows US Lindsey Vonn crashing during the women's downhill event at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games on February 8, 2026. (Photo by Handout / various sources / AFP)
This handout video grab from IOC/OBS shows US Lindsey Vonn crashing during the women's downhill event at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games on February 8, 2026. (Photo by Handout / various sources / AFP)

Lindsey Vonn had surgery on a fracture of her left leg following the American's heavy fall in the Winter Olympics downhill, the hospital said in a statement given to Italian media on Sunday.

"In the afternoon, (Vonn) underwent orthopedic surgery to stabilize a fracture of the left leg," the Ca' Foncello hospital in Treviso said.

Vonn, 41, was flown to Treviso after she was strapped into a medical stretcher and winched off the sunlit Olimpia delle Tofane piste in Cortina d'Ampezzo.

Vonn, whose battle to reach the start line despite the serious injury to her left knee dominated the opening days of the Milano Cortina Olympics, saw her unlikely quest halted in screaming agony on the snow.

Wearing bib number 13 and with a brace on the left knee she ⁠injured in a crash at Crans Montana on January 30, Vonn looked pumped up at the start gate.

She tapped her ski poles before setting off in typically aggressive fashion down one of her favorite pistes on a mountain that has rewarded her in the past.

The 2010 gold medalist, the second most successful female World Cup skier of all time with 84 wins, appeared to clip the fourth gate with her shoulder, losing control and being launched into the air.

She then barreled off the course at high speed before coming to rest in a crumpled heap.

Vonn could be heard screaming on television coverage as fans and teammates gasped in horror before a shocked hush fell on the packed finish area.

She was quickly surrounded by several medics and officials before a yellow Falco 2 ⁠Alpine rescue helicopter arrived and winched her away on an orange stretcher.


Meloni Condemns 'Enemies of Italy' after Clashes in Olympics Host City Milan

Demonstrators hold smoke flares during a protest against the environmental, economic and social impact of the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, February 7, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Coombs
Demonstrators hold smoke flares during a protest against the environmental, economic and social impact of the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, February 7, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Coombs
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Meloni Condemns 'Enemies of Italy' after Clashes in Olympics Host City Milan

Demonstrators hold smoke flares during a protest against the environmental, economic and social impact of the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, February 7, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Coombs
Demonstrators hold smoke flares during a protest against the environmental, economic and social impact of the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, February 7, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Coombs

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has condemned anti-Olympics protesters as "enemies of Italy" after violence on the fringes of a demonstration in Milan on Saturday night and sabotage attacks on the national rail network.

The incidents happened on the first full day of competition in the Winter Games that Milan, Italy's financial capital, is hosting with the Alpine town of Cortina d'Ampezzo.

Meloni praised the thousands of Italians who she said were working to make the Games run smoothly and present a positive face of Italy.

"Then ⁠there are those who are enemies of Italy and Italians, demonstrating 'against the Olympics' and ensuring that these images are broadcast on television screens around the world. After others cut the railway cables to prevent trains from departing," she wrote on Instagram on Sunday.

A group of around 100 protesters ⁠threw firecrackers, smoke bombs and bottles at police after breaking away from the main body of a demonstration in Milan.

An estimated 10,000 people had taken to the city's streets in a protest over housing costs and environmental concerns linked to the Games.

Police used water cannon to restore order and detained six people.

Also on Saturday, authorities said saboteurs had damaged rail infrastructure near the northern Italian city of Bologna, disrupting train journeys.

Police reported three separate ⁠incidents at different locations, which caused delays of up to 2-1/2 hours for high-speed, Intercity and regional services.

No one has claimed responsibility for the damage.

"Once again, solidarity with the police, the city of Milan, and all those who will see their work undermined by these gangs of criminals," added Meloni, who heads a right-wing coalition.

The Italian police have been given new arrest powers after violence last weekend at a protest by the hard-left in the city of Turin, in which more than 100 police officers were injured.


Liverpool New Signing Jacquet Suffers 'Serious' Injury

Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - RC Lens v Stade Rennes - Stade Bollaert-Delelis, Lens, France - February 7, 2026  Stade Rennes' Jeremy Jacquet in action REUTERS/Benoit Tessier
Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - RC Lens v Stade Rennes - Stade Bollaert-Delelis, Lens, France - February 7, 2026 Stade Rennes' Jeremy Jacquet in action REUTERS/Benoit Tessier
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Liverpool New Signing Jacquet Suffers 'Serious' Injury

Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - RC Lens v Stade Rennes - Stade Bollaert-Delelis, Lens, France - February 7, 2026  Stade Rennes' Jeremy Jacquet in action REUTERS/Benoit Tessier
Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - RC Lens v Stade Rennes - Stade Bollaert-Delelis, Lens, France - February 7, 2026 Stade Rennes' Jeremy Jacquet in action REUTERS/Benoit Tessier

Liverpool's new signing Jeremy Jacquet suffered a "serious" shoulder injury while playing for Rennes in their 3-1 Ligue 1 defeat at RC Lens on Saturday, casting doubt over the defender’s availability ahead of his summer move to Anfield.

Jacquet fell awkwardly in the second half of the ⁠French league match and appeared in agony as he left the pitch.

"For Jeremy, it's his shoulder, and for Abdelhamid (Ait Boudlal, another Rennes player injured in the ⁠same match) it's muscular," Rennes head coach Habib Beye told reporters after the match.

"We'll have time to see, but it's definitely quite serious for both of them."
Liverpool agreed a 60-million-pound ($80-million) deal for Jacquet on Monday, but the 20-year-old defender will stay with ⁠the French club until the end of the season.

Liverpool, provisionally sixth in the Premier League table, will face Manchester City on Sunday with four defenders - Giovanni Leoni, Joe Gomez, Jeremie Frimpong and Conor Bradley - sidelined due to injuries.