The Games of the XXXIII Olympiad, starting in Paris this month, mark the end of an architectural era. Largely gone are the starchitects and quintessentially French grands projets. And in their place are existing and temporary venues. 

London 2012 pioneered the use of temporary venues but was still dominated by a new stadium and Olympic Park in east London. Even the last games in Tokyo had a landmark new stadium – not untypically marred by controversy when Zaha Hadid’s design was dropped as too expensive and repalced by another by Kengo Kuma.

This time, however, the Stade de France, built to host the 1998 football World Cup, will be pressed into action as the main Olympic venue. It is a reflection of how far arguably the world’s biggest sporting event has moved towards more flexible and sustainable venues.

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