Locking in Paris 2024: legacy framing and the eventification of public policy - exposing the political footprint of mega-events
Abstract
This article examines how the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games became a stabilized policy project despite growing contestation of mega-events. Using an interpretive, macrosociological approach grounded in policy framing, it analyses the consolidation of a dominant pro-Olympic coalition in France (2017-2024). Based on a longitudinal qualitative corpus (interviews, policy documents, and media coverage), the study identifies three mechanisms underpinning coalition consolidation: (1) institutional lock-in, translating political choices into technical planning; (2) coalition framing, aligning divergent interests through symbolic consensus; and (3) strategic adjustments, absorbing criticism through tactical adaptations. We show how legacy framing generates legitimacy and consolidates policy trajectories, producing a lasting political footprint. While environmental impacts of mega-events are increasingly debated, these political effects remain comparatively underexamined. The article repoliticizes the Olympic narrative by exposing the normative, emotional, and institutional foundations that make it so resilient.
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BibTeX
@article{bourbilleres2026locking,
title = {{Locking in Paris 2024: legacy framing and the eventification of public policy - exposing the political footprint of mega-events}},
author = {Hugo Bourbillères},
journal = {Critical Policy Studies},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1080/19460171.2026.2622052},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-05513411v1},
note = {CC BY-NC 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Locking in Paris 2024: legacy framing and the eventification of public policy - exposing the political footprint of mega-events
AU - Hugo Bourbillères
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/07
JO - Critical Policy Studies
DO - 10.1080/19460171.2026.2622052
UR - https://hal.science/hal-05513411v1
AB - This article examines how the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games became a stabilized policy project despite growing contestation of mega-events. Using an interpretive, macrosociological approach grounded in policy framing, it analyses the consolidation of a dominant pro-Olympic coalition in France (2017-2024). Based on a longitudinal qualitative corpus (interviews, policy documents, and media coverage), the study identifies three mechanisms underpinning coalition consolidation: (1) institutional lock-in, translating political choices into technical planning; (2) coalition framing, aligning divergent interests through symbolic consensus; and (3) strategic adjustments, absorbing criticism through tactical adaptations. We show how legacy framing generates legitimacy and consolidates policy trajectories, producing a lasting political footprint. While environmental impacts of mega-events are increasingly debated, these political effects remain comparatively underexamined. The article repoliticizes the Olympic narrative by exposing the normative, emotional, and institutional foundations that make it so resilient.
SN - 1946-0171
SN - 1946-018X
ER -