Thursday, 6 June, marks the start of the final countdown until the start of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, with only 50 days to go until the opening ceremony of the competition.

Tens of thousands of athletes will take part in the competition, with 329 events over 32 sports being scheduled between 26 July and 11 August 2024. Like in the previous editions, handball is also represented, with both the men’s and the women’s competitions taking place in the South Paris Arena 6 for the preliminary round and in the Stade Pierre Mauroy in Lille for the knockout phase of the competition.

"It's like the Games start tomorrow!" Guillaume Gille, the coach of the French men’s handball team, so rightly said, according to the official site of the Olympic Games. Gille is a gold medallist both as a player, at Beijing 2008 and London 2012, and as a coach at Tokyo 2020.

The International Handball Federation (IHF) has announced an ‘IHF Beach Handball Showcase’ in Paris to highlight the spectacular sport and its culture, as the eyes of the world look towards the French capital, hosts of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games this summer.

Three men’s and three women’s All-star Teams, plus the French men’s and women’s national teams will play Beach Handball games across three days – Saturday 27, Sunday 28 and Monday 29 July 2024 – at the headquarters of the FFHB, the ‘Maison du Handball’, based in Créteil, just 20km from the Olympic Stadium.

The Olympic Torch Relay is also in full fledge, having visited Greece, the outer sea departments and several continental departments of France. Now, the Olympic Torch is currently spending a last day in the Pays de la Loire region.

“The Olympic Games are the only event that brings the entire world together in peaceful competition. The Olympic athletes send this powerful message: yes, it is possible to compete fiercely against each other and at the same time live peacefully together under one roof. The athletes will shine and show us what greatness humans are capable of with all their excellence, determination and resilience,” said the IOC President, Thomas Bach.

Handball joins the party for Paris 2024

The handball competitions at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, which will see 12 men’s teams and 12 women’s teams compete for the coveted gold medals, will start on 25 July and will take place in the South Paris Arena 6 for the preliminary round and the Pierre Mauroy Stadium in Lille for the knockout phase of the two competitions.

Tuesday, 16 April, the draw for the preliminary round of the handball competition took place in Créteil, France, at the Maison du Handball – The House of Handball.

The Paris 2024 Olympic Games will start on 25 July, with the women’s competition, as the men’s competition is due to start two days later, on 27 July. The groups will be played in the South Paris Arena 6, while the knockout phase is hosted by the Stade Pierre Mauroy in Lille.

The women’s gold medal match will take place on Saturday, 10 August, at 15:00 CEST, while the men’s gold medal match is scheduled one day later, Sunday, 11 August, at 13:30 CEST.