The Olympic mascot is a big drawcard in terms of publicity for the Games. As the ambassadors of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, mascots embody the spirit of the Olympics. Their role in welcoming athletes and visitors to the Games is vital.
They can also play a big role in the merchandising for the host country. The Bald Eagle mascot of the 1984 Summer Games is credited with being a major reason why the 1084 LA Games were the first Olympics to turn a profit in more than 50 years.
Most mascots represent the host country’s cultural symbols or animals.
At the launch of the Paris Olympic mascot, Paris 2024 President Tony Estanguet said, “Rather than an animal, our mascots represent an ideal.”
The mascot is in the shape of the traditional small Phrygian hat which has a deep significance in the history of France, dating back to the French Revolution when these caps were worn to symbolise freedom.
They are also known as the liberty cap and are a common reference for the French people, whether in art as a metaphor for freedom, or on the iconic figure of Marianne in every town hall, coins, stamps or other everyday objects.
Estanguet added, “Since it is familiar to us and appears on our stamps and the pediments of our town halls, it also represents French identity and spirit.”
Also an international symbol of liberty, they were worn by freed slaves in Roman times. They also appear on different emblems in North and South America.
Pronounced free-jee-us, the Olympic Phryge were designed by the Paris 2024 Design team in the French colours of blue, white and red, with the golden Paris 2024 logo emblazoned across its chest like superhero symbols.
There are two main characters, the 2024 Paris Olympics Phryge and the 2024 Paris Paralympics, Phryge, who has a prosthetic leg as a symbol of inclusion.
The Olympic Phryge is “the smart one” with a “methodical mind and alluring charm”, while the Paralympics Phryge is “a party animal, spontaneous and a bit hotheaded.”
The Paris 2024 organisers also compared Phryges to Minions or The Smurfs.
The Olympic Phryge and Paralympic Phryge motto is: “Alone we go faster, but together we go further."
This represents how the mascots and the people of the world, can make each other better by working side-by-side.
The practice of a mascot was started in France at the 1968 Grenoble Winter Games with Schuss, a z-shaped skier with a big red head, blue legs, and a single sky.
The 2026 Winter Games in Milano and Cortina, Italy have already announced their mascot, a pair of stoats, small mammals found in that part of Europe, named Tino and Mila.
A total of 10,500 athletes representing 206 countries are competing in this year’s Olympics which officially starts tomorrow, Friday, 26 July.
