There is a very ‘customised’ approach to this year’s Summer Olympics and Paralympics scheduled to take place in Paris, France, July 26 onwards. For the first time in the history of the Games, there is a creative partner and jeweller for medals and trunks.
LVMH jewellery house Chaumet will conceive the design of medals and trunks as part of a 150-million euro sponsorship deal LVMH and its other brands have entered into with the Paris Olympics. The games also have a first ever beer sponsor, AB InBev, and this partnership will be have their non-alcoholic Corona Cero brand at its forefront.
There is also a dedicated global e-commerce platform, On Location, which is the official and exclusive hospitality provider for the games offering customised hospitality to the public for the first time ever. The Olympic and Paralympic flames will travel in a custom-made Louis Vuitton trunk. The brand has specialised in trophy trunks since 1988 for many popular sports events, including last year’s Rugby World Cup held in France. Upscale menswear label Berluti will design the opening ceremony uniforms for the French teams.
The Chaumet design studio has made the medal into a veritable jewel, with a design conceived around three sources of inspiration — the hexagon (a visual emblem symbolising France), radiance and gem-setting. The medal designs draw inspiration from the iconic symbols of France and Paris, combining tradition and modernity.
Interestingly, the centre of each medal has been cut from an authentic piece of iron from the Eiffel Tower, preserved during the renovation of the monument. The other side illustrates the rebirth of the modern Olympic Games in Greece. Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, is depicted against the backdrop of the Acropolis, leaving the Panathenaic Stadium, where the first Modern Olympics were held in 1896. The inscription ‘Paris 2024’ also figures on the medal and is engraved in universal Braille, symbolising accessibility, as well as a nod to the French inventor of the language, Louis Braille.
The trunks to house the medals — one for the Olympics and another for the Paralympics — have prominent display cases, with dozens of drawers, each holding three medals.
Simultaneously offering world-class hospitality, ticketing, curated guest experiences, live event production, and travel management across sports, entertainment, and fashion, On Location, a premium experience provider, has been roped in as the centralised and official service provider this year. It is also an exclusive hospitality partner of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics, as well as the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics. What does it offer? Customised packages including guaranteed tickets to sporting sessions and a wide array of additional options, including hotels, transport, and unique hospitality experiences in the competition venues or in the city. From personalised accommodation preferences and immersive experiences like food and beverage at the Parisian-inspired food market, live music performances, sports demonstrations, the games will be accessible to all budgets. A custom programme based on per-person double occupancy starts at €43K.
Visa & Fibank are collaborating to create custom debit and credit cards. The credit cards will feature a gold design depicting the Arc de Triomphe in a symbol of victory and triumph while the debit cards feature an Eiffel Tower design which is emblematic of Paris and French culture. Visa has been a worldwide Olympic partner since 1986 and in 2018, it extended its Olympic partnership through to 2032. The Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev) is the first global beer sponsor with Corona Cero to accelerate no-alcohol beer growth. The alcohol-free brew will be the official beer along with Coca-Cola, Toyota, Airbnb and others as top-tier exclusive sponsors. The IOC and AB InBev deal includes the upcoming Paris Olympics in July, the 2026 Winter Games in Italy, and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.