While the rest of the internet seems preoccupied with the return of cardboard beds to the Paris 2024 Olympic Village (don’t ask), as a fitness writer I’m more interested in where the athletes will be training as they apply the final touches to their medal-hunting preparations.
To quell my curiosity, the event’s official equipment supplier Technogym has sent me the first official photos of the training area in the athlete village. And it’s certainly no Planet Fitness.
The enormous and immaculate light-gray building houses rows upon rows of cardio equipment, including treadmills (curved and standard), ski ergs, rowing machines, ellipticals, and static bikes.
There’s another section visible for strength training, with a series of leg-press and hack-squat machines (which were invented by Technogym founder Nerio Alessandri in the 1980s) alongside other plate-loaded equipment.
A closer look at the background of the picture below also reveals Smith machines and cable machines.
The Italian brand has kitted out 29 athlete training centers in total, with the pictured pièce de résistance found at the Olympic and Paralympic Village in Paris Saint-Denis.
Several other sport-specific training sites can be found in Lille, Nice and even Tahiti (where athletes are stationed for the surf event).
Across these sites there are roughly 1,200 pieces of equipment catering to 14,900 Olympic and Paralympic athletes. Among these athletes more than 200 nationalities are represented, and they’ll be competing in 32 Olympic sports and 22 Paralympic sports.
I recently visited Technogym’s headquarters in Italy, discovering how the brand develops its equipment to handle the demands of elite athletes like those set to compete in Paris this July and August.
Each machine is subjected to intense bouts of testing, with professional sportspeople and Olympians brought in to ensure the equipment can handle the rigors of sustained, intense use.
“If it works for Olympic athletes, it will work for everyday people,” an engineer told me.
Now the equipment is ready to face the ultimate test, with thousands of athletes pushing it to its limit as they chase down their gold medal ambitions.
If these pictures prompted you to start planning your own home gym, take a look at our guide to the best treadmills for a spot of inspiration.