The Olympic media center during the Games, The Carreau du Temple, is celebrating its tenth anniversary

Do you know the Pou-Volant studio or the Forêt Noire sports hall? These two spaces at the Carreau du Temple host sporting activities such as martial arts, roller skating, acrobatics, basketball, flamenco… You may not know this, but around a hundred classes are held every week in this metal pavilion, which for a long time housed one of Paris' most emblematic covered markets.

Restoration of the Carreau du Temple building began in the mid-2000s. Following a proposal and a vote, the building was opened to residents. A place where they could discover new artistic, sporting and cultural events and activities.

The arrival of Sandrina Martins as director of the Carreau du Temple in 2015 boosted this new approach for the former market place. " Residents dreamt that this sumptuous building would one day become a place where sports and art could come together. For nearly ten years, the team has here has worked tirelessly to solidify, refine and flesh out this singular proposal", she explains.

In the run-up to the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the current artistic program focuses on sport at Le Carreau. Celebrating Le Carreau's tenth anniversary in the same year that the Games are coming to Paris charged with meaning. On this special occasion, the festivities promise to loosen inhibitions as mind, body and soul, art and sport, youth and old age, professionals and casuals are showcased on May 18th. See you all at this festive, dancing and popular event!

With a nod both to emerging cultures and traditionnel values The Carreau du Temple has always put on a wide range of shows and activities. "Every two years, an allocation committee meets to choose the fifty or so associations that will come and be part of the project. These activities are selected for their inclusive qualities, adapted to all skill levels and ages. They must also guarantee everyone's well-being and transmit fun, fulfillment and self-caring values", explains Sandrina Martins.

The team is also keen to put forward new trends, such as aerial yoga, and promote parasports.

Classes run from Monday to Friday from 12:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. The Pou-Volant studio (Dojo) is a large studio mainly dedicated to martial arts, relaxation and well-being (300 m²), while the Studio de Flore is mainly dedicated to choreography and urban culture (300 m²).

Some 300 training courses are also organized each year during weekends and school vacations.

On the first floor of the building, the Halle du Carreau du Temple, a 1,800 m² glazed area under an 8-metre high glass roof, is a great place for organizing contemporary art fairs, trade shows or fashion week shows… As well as events on the Carreau du Temple program, such as Food Temple, a culinary festival, or the Everybody Festival, which questions the role of the body in contemporary society.

Every year in July, the Jogging Festival, a major event of the Formes Olympiques Festival, presents five days of artistic proposals, XXL sports classes, contemporary artworks, workshops and participative installations. If, in 2023, participants were able to join in a big Roller dance party, a "slow race" or mime games based around sport, the 2024 edition, which will take place from June 26th to 30th, 2024, will be even bigger. "It's going to be like a firework display," comments Sandrina Martins, who's ready to get started. The Grand Halle at Carreau du Temple will host shows that question and subvert sporting codes, inclusiveness and para-sports classes, contemporary art installations, participatory workshops, a photo exhibition… It will joyfully interweave creativity, surpassing oneself and inclusivity for everyone!".

Events include cinema club screenings and dance performances, either in the hall or in the 250-seat tiered auditorium, and sometimes even outside. They are always designed to explore the relationship between culture and sport. Last season, for example, the Carreau staged shows on the subject of sports commentary and homophobia in sport.

This season, the RUN choreographic marathon invited one hundred amateur dancers for a four-hour performance. In September 2023, a show inspired by the novel On achève bien les chevaux (Horses on the Loose) was staged at the Japy gymnasium (^11th arrondissement), featuring a dance marathon.

For almost five years, feminist journalist Lauren Bastide has hosted a series of monthly meetings with researchers, activists and artists on the stage of the Carreau du Temple. These debates are accessible to deaf and hard-of-hearing audiences thanks to live French Sign Language translation.

The 2023-2024 cycle of meetings is entitled Bonnes joueuses (Good players) and looks at women in sport. What roles can women play in major sporting events? How can sport be a vehicle for feminism? How can it help eradicate sexual violence? How can we free ourselves from sexist and discriminatory abuse? How do we talk about sportswomen, how do we promote them, how much do we pay them? Can women really be champions? "Hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games aren't going to put these issues on hold. We shouldn't stop talking about them," insists the Carreau du Temple director.

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The end of the current school year will mark another transformation for the site: the City has chosen it as the non-accredited media center for the Paris 2024 Games.

Between July and mid-September, Sandrina Martins will be handing over the keys to the site to the 8,000 journalists who will not be following the competitions, but who will be covering different aspects of the Games. "They will be able to use the whole space, which for the occasion will be kitted out with better telecoms, 300 workstations, a relaxation area and a snacking area. The decor and furnishings will look something like a Parisian bistro. This central location will be open 24 hours a day, so they can work at any time.

The start of the school year at Le Carreau in September 2024 will therefore be postponed by a few days.