SVG Sit-Down: RWS Global's Kim Henshaw, Scott Horton Reflect on the In-Venue Experience of the 2024 Olympics and Paralympics in Paris More than 700 staffers drive in-stadium productions of 54 sports in 37 venues By Kristian Hern ndez, Senior Editor Wednesday, November 13, 2024 - 12:29 pm
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Since the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, RWS Global - a production and entertainment company at the center of international sporting events, live performances, and more - has been responsible for the in-venue activations and overall fan experience in the host nation. With the eyes of the world set on the 2024 Olympics and Paralympics in Paris, their onsite team of 450 French staffers as well as support from afar helped create a magical environment for spectators of all 54 sports within 37 venues across the City of Light and France this past summer.
This included generating over 7,000 hours of in-venue content created, curating and programming more than 2,000 music tracks, arranging more than 40 new and original compositions to compile the Symphony of Sport' project, hosting 878 victory ceremonies that distributed over 4,700 medals, delivering 12,415 headshots graphics of athletes, and leveraging the power of their PV4 integrated software system with 70 operators, sports producers, content programmers and global support staff.
SVG sat down with RWS Global's EVP, Sports Business Operations, Kim Henshaw, and RWS Global Sports' EVP Scott Horton to discuss the process of planning and executing the in-venue portion of Paris 2024, how the in-stadium entertainment of this competition compares to the other global sports tournaments that they're involved in, and how technology has evolved since their first Olympic Games.
More than 700 staffers drive in-stadium productions of 54 sports in 37 venues.
What were your responsibilities in Paris and how does the multi-sport nature of these Games make your job different?
Horton: We were responsible for a huge footprint and a massive team that we needed to build across the Olympics and Paralympics. We work very closely with the organizing committee to ensure that the number of venues had consistency with our delivery and would allow fans to know that they were at the Olympics no matter what stadium or arena they were in. This included our branding, messaging, music, flavor, and experience was of high quality and synced together but most importantly, we wanted the spectators to have fun. We needed our presentation to be neutral, but also have fans understand what's going on if it was their first time watching a particular sport.
Henshaw: There's a big differentiator between productions for a franchise and producing for an Olympic Games. When you go to a specific team's stadium, their fans understand the rules of the game, know how gameday works, and are ready to be entertained. For a major multi-sports competition like the Olympics, these games are in a one-off location with new and different variables. Fans want to be a part of this global celebration but may not know the intricacies of a sport like fencing. Our job is to find that balance between entertainment and fan engagement while also educating these new fans in a way that's easy to digest.
Can you take us back to the pre-planning phase and what it's like working with the International Olympic Committee (IOC)?
Horton: We had a very short lead in, which made it difficult, but we luckily have the team and experience to get going right when we signed the contract. We embedded our producers and project managers at the LOC (Local Organizing Committee) and worked with their presentation department. We have what we call cluster managers, split them up amongst their dedicated sports, talk through the protocol of each event, and build our show around those parameters. In line with the Creative Strategy of the LOC, we intertwined these creative elements into each of the individual sports. . With a bunch of Functional areas within the organizing committee, we had to integrate [our staff] into venue management, broadcast, logistics, marketing, brand management, and other departments as well. For example, the area for 3 3 Basketball at La Concorde needed to transition into Breaking. We needed to prepare our technology and plan with both sports in advance to schedule rehearsal time and do the appropriate tech checks. It's a very big program with a lot of things to juggle.
How did the team adapt to last minute changes in Paris?
Henshaw: One of the things that RWS Global Sports is an expert at is mobilizing teams into foreign environments and creating an entire show on the run. We have our own content creating teams that are producing all of the graphics that go on the numerous LED displays in each stadium. With venues having their own challenges and specific deliverables, being flexible and adaptable is a specialty of ours. From the IOC and broadcast teams to every international federation wanting their athletes to be presented in the best way possible, there are so many stakeholders at an Olympic Games. You also have to add in difficult working situations that may come up like ordinary day-to-day challenges and getting production teams to and from different venues when transport isn't running properly. Those were operational challenges, but we were also tasked with executing a synchronized light show for the 100-meter final. This was decided less than a week away from the race, so we had to program the show on the fly, get thousands of light-up wristbands delivered to the stadium, and distribute them to the spectators as they entered into the stadium.
How were productions at venues with multiple events, like various games of Rugby Sevens or simultaneous Track & Field events at Stade de France, stitched together to create
