"Our ambition is to contribute to the success of France with Games that are truly French. This means a commitment to innovation and to showcasing the best of our country," said Tony Estanguet, President of the Organising Committee (OCOG).

Ending the year with 84% of construction completed, the former Olympic champion is delighted. Construction of the Olympic and Paralympic Village will be completed on 31 December. The keys will be handed over to Paris 2024 on 1 March. "There is no particular alarm," assured the OCOG President. 

Tony Estanguet also emphasised that 96% of the budget for the Paris Olympic Games comes from the private sector, but that 36 new partners continue to join. "This hasn't changed since the beginning".

The OCOG secured 1.2 million euros in marketing revenue, or 97% of its target. The pyramid of the OCOG's national marketing programme now comprises 58 partners.  Regarding ticket sales, Tony Estanguet announced: "7.6 million tickets have been sold. However, tickets are still available, especially for football, handball, basketball, water polo and boxing.

All volunteers were selected after receiving 313,000 applications. Candidates come from 150 countries. One third of the 45,000 selected candidates come from the sports movement. They'll all be selected before the end of the year. They will be invited to attend a major meeting of the Paris 2024 volunteers on the 23rd of March. 

The OCOG is in the process of extending the walls of its headquarters in the Pulse building in Saint-Denis. Today, the company employs 2,100 people. "Tony Estanguet explains: "We will double this number in the next six months. The organising committee has made massive use of external help in addition to these internal resources. No fewer than 2,200 suppliers have been contacted, either directly or indirectly, for a total of 2.3 billion euros in contracts that have already been awarded. 3/4 of the companies selected are VSE/SMEs and 90% are French. 

Former sportsman Tony Estanguet once again raised the issue of security during the opening ceremony on the banks of the Seine. For the first time in the history of the Adult Olympic Games (there is a precedent for the Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires in 2018), the event will take place outside a stadium. This is in France, which has been under a "terrorist alert" since October.  Estanguet insisted that "an exceptional security plan has been drawn up". He also said that the street ceremony had not been called into question. 

As for the security perimeters announced three weeks ago around the competition venues, which had caused concern among the French for their freedom of movement, the three-time Olympic champion was unequivocal. "The message is that the neighbours need to be informed, all the information is there for people to organise themselves accordingly," he told the press in Saint Denis.

Paris 2024 hopes to finalise its private security plan by the end of the first quarter of next year. 70% of its needs have been covered so far, organisers said on Wednesday.

"In terms of private security contracts, we have covered 70% of our needs. We've had three tenders which have helped us recruit 47 private security companies," Paris 2024 president Tony Estanguet told a press conference.

"We've just launched their last tender and it should be completed by the end of the first trimester; it's the last part of a two-year effort." 

Tony Estanguet also addressed the issue of public transport. He declined to comment on recent alarmist statements by some politicians. In order to accommodate up to 800,000 more people per day in the Île-de-France region, public transport services will be increased by 15% during the Games compared to the normal summer holiday period, particularly on the RER C and Metro Line 9 to Roland Garros and the Parc des Princes.

In this regard, the President of the OCOG expressed his confidence. "Commitments have been met, we will have 100% public transport to the Olympic venues," said Clément Beaune, the French Minister of Transport, at the 9th Olympic Games. 

Some 830,000 tickets have already been sold for the Paralympic Games (28 August to 8 September). Sales of the 2.8 million tickets for the 550 events began on 9 October. Around 80% of the tickets already allocated for the Paralympic Games have been purchased by public bodies (state, local authorities, etc.). "The challenge now is to win the support of all French people," explained the former three-time Olympic canoeing champion.

"Traditionally, in all recent editions of the Paralympic Games, just under half of the tickets have been sold at the time of the Games, at the very last minute, and it is very likely that we will not be an exception," added Estanguet.