How to talk about the Olympics in French

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Imagine this: When Simone Biles performs a particularly amazing dismount during the gymnastics competition in Paris at the 2024 Summer Olympics, a discussion starts between you and a kind French family sitting next to you. You want to say something about it, but, horror of horrors, you can’t pronounce “double salto” in French!

Read on to acquire crucial French vocabulary for the Olympics if you’re a French learner hoping to attend this year’s competition in Paris, or even if you just want to watch from home.

(Incidentally, “double salto” is complimentary—it’s double salto in French as well!)


Les JO : the Olympics

First things first: When we refer to the Olympic Games in English, we say “Olympics,” but in French, les JO! Les Jeux Olympiques, or “the Olympic Games,” is what it stands for.

FRENCH	TRANSLATION
Zari: Lily, j’ai hâte d’être aux JO ! Lily: Moi, j’ai hâte de me rendormir.	Zari: Lily, I can’t wait for the Olympics! Lily: I can’t wait to go back to sleep.

L’athlétisme : Track and field

Not only are track and field competitions among the most popular, but they are also the oldest, having originated in 776 BCE at the first Olympic Games! While sprint is the same in both French and English, you may not be familiar with the terms lancer de poids (literally, “throw weight”), saut à la perche (pole vault), or haies (hurdles and hedges). Épisodes are the several events that make up track and field as a whole.

Bonus: If you’re very fortunate, you could also witness someone breaking a world record!

FRENCH	TRANSLATION
Lin: Quelle est ton épreuve préférée de l’athlétisme ? Lucy: Je suis une grande fan du saut à la perche, mais je n’ai battu le record du monde qu’au lancer du poids. Lin: Quoi ?!	Lin: What’s your favorite track and field event? Lucy: I’m a big fan of the pole vault, but I only beat a world record for the shot put. Lin: What?!

La natation : Swimming

Due in part to the open-water activities being held in the Seine, swimming is one of the most anticipated events in Paris this year. Many locals are curious as to whether the urban river will be safe for swimming. On the other hand, you will be witnessing nage libre (freestyle), brasse (breaststroke), dos (backstroke), or papillon (butterfly stroke) at La Défense Arena if you are attending an indoor swimming tournament.

Bonus: Another way to put it is that someone has “won the event,” or remporté l’épreuve.

FRENCH	TRANSLATION
Eddy: Ce serait super de remporter une épreuve de natation aux JO ! Toi, tu préférerais participer à la nage libre ou au papillon ? Junior: Il y a une épreuve pour manger de la glace au chocolat ?	Eddy: It would be amazing to win a swimming event at the Olympics! Would you rather compete in freestyle or butterfly stroke? Junior: Is there an event for eating chocolate ice cream?

La gymnastique : Gymnastics

The term “agrès” refers to the many events that a gymnast may execute, such as sol (floor), poutre (balance beam), and saut de cheval (vault, or literally “horse jump,” if you’re at an artistic gymnastics competition.

Bonus: In addition, médailles, which come in the forms of d’or (gold), d’argent (silver), and de bronze (bronze), are also likely to come up in conversation.

FRENCH	TRANSLATION
Vikram: Elle va remporter la médaille d’or au saut de cheval cette année, j’en suis sûr ! C’est mon agrès préféré ! Et toi, Oscar ? Oscar: Je pensais que c’était de la gymnastique artistique ! Ils sont où les peintres ?	Vikram: She’s going to win the gold medal for the vault this year, I’m sure of it! This is my favorite event! What about you, Oscar? Oscar: I thought this was artistic gymnastics! Where are the painters?