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The cycling mountain bike competition of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris is scheduled to run at Élancourt Hill for mountain biking.
Rising to an altitude of 231 meters, Elancourt Hill is the highest point in the Paris region. Its summit offers a breathtaking view of the Eiffel Tower, La Défense and the forests surrounding Paris. No major infrastructure will be created on site, in the interest of having the least effect on the biodiversity of the site. The future routes for the Olympic mountain bike events, designed by South African expert Nick Floros, are 95% based on existing paths. Better still, the different itineraries proposed as a legacy will offer a range of routes accessible to a diverse audience, from young people to experienced athletes, including families.
The artificial hill of Elancourt occupies the site of old sandstone quarries which supplied materials to entrepreneurs. After the quarries closed in the mid-19th century, the site became a landfill until its total closure in 1975. An ambitious rehabilitation program followed in the 1980s, to transform the hill into a leisure park open to the public .
The choice of Elancourt by Paris 2024 makes it possible to strengthen and supervise an already existing sporting activity, while improving the ecological benefit of the site. The project presents a triple sporting, societal and environmental heritage. The territory of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines will become a reference territory for cycling, allowing people far from sporting activities to have access to a structuring heritage, while allowing an improvement and enhancement of biodiversity of the territory.
Legacy
The Games will strengthen the “leisure” dimension of Élancourt Hill. Accessible to all, it will become a privileged terrain for mountain bike enthusiasts, whatever their level of practice, and fans of walking and running. The hill will also become a place for family walks, in a secure and decontaminated environment, and regenerated nature.
Furthermore, the site will be used for the organization of national and international mountain bike competitions.
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