Olympic rendezvous @ Samsung, in the heart of Paris

With less than 100 days to go until Paris 2024, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a Worldwide Olympic and Paralympic Partner has officially kicked-off its ‘Open always wins’ campaign, which celebrates the brand’s shared values of openness with the upcoming Olympic and Paralympic Games – and announced the grand opening of its Olympic rendezvous @ Samsung | Champs-Elysees 125 showcase.

As announced in January, Samsung’s ‘Open always wins’ message articulates the brand’s belief that openness enables new perspectives and infinite possibilities and will serve as the heart of its Paris 2024 programming. The new campaign, which debuted recently, brings ‘Open always wins’ to life through the stories of Team Samsung Galaxy skateboarder Aurélien Giraud (France), Para sprinter Johannes Floors (Germany) and breakdancer Sarah Bee (France), and demonstrates how being open enables you to do extraordinary things.

“As a Worldwide Olympic and Paralympic Partner, Samsung has been driving innovation and delivering cutting-edge technology and experiences at the Games for nearly 40 years,” said TM Roh, President and Head of Mobile eXperience Business at Samsung Electronics.

“The way we enjoy the Games has evolved dramatically over time, with technology playing a critical role in bringing the Olympic spirit to life. This is even more true as we embark on a ‘Games wide open,’ and we are excited to bring Olympic fans and athletes closer than ever by opening up new experiences and meaningful connections at Paris 2024 with our ‘Open always wins’ campaign.”

Samsung has also unveiled a brand-new showcase, Olympic rendezvous @ Samsung | Champs-Elysees 125, which will take Olympic and Paralympic Games fans on an epic journey to Paris 2024 through iconic experiences. They will get to relive the biggest highlights of Games past with Galaxy, and explore Samsung’s latest innovations, and create lifelong memories with Galaxy AI.

In creating this showcase, Samsung collaborated with the visionary Pritzker Prize-winning architect Jean Nouvel, whose ground-breaking work mirrors the remarkable spirit of Olympic and Paralympic athletes, constantly pushing boundaries and redefining possibilities. Inspired by Parisian Salons from the Age of Enlightenment, the space is designed to celebrate openness to new perspectives and possibilities through reflections and optical illusions that evoke feeling of openness, harmony and connection.

“The entire space is designed to celebrate Samsung’s commitment to openness,” said Jean Nouvel. “The abstract graphic façade captures the reflections of movements and lights that appear and disappear in an instant, while the matte, reflective white mirrors in the lobby invite discovery of latest innovations.”

The Olympic rendezvous @ Samsung | Champs-Elysees 125 was inaugurated with a ribbon cutting ceremony attended by TM Roh, Team Samsung Galaxy ambassadors including French surfer Joanne Defay, UK breakdancer Karam Singh, and French Para-swimmer Ugo Didier; Anne-Sophie Voumard, Television and Marketing Services Managing Director for the IOC, Pierre Rabadan, Deputy Mayor in charge of Sport, Olympic and Paralympic Games for the City of Paris and Étienne Thobois, Director General of the Paris Organising Committee for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

“We’re excited to see our shared values celebrated for these ‘Games wide open’ at this Olympic rendezvous @ Samsung,” said Anne-Sophie Voumard, Managing Director, IOC Television and Marketing Services. “Samsung has played a huge part in elevating the Olympic Games’ fan experience through their innovative technology over the decades, and we’re impressed to see them take it to the next level with this showcase as well as through many ways they will support staging of the upcoming Olympic and Paralympic Games here in Paris.”

The Olympic rendezvous @ Samsung, located at 125 Avenue des Champs-Élysées, will open its doors to the public on 03 May and run until October 31, from 10:00am-20:00pm on Monday-Saturday and 11:00am-20:00pm on Sundays. It will host a series of special events over the course of the summer and will be open to anyone who wants to immerse themselves in the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024.

In addition to the showcase located at Champs-Élysées, Samsung will open up additional Olympic rendezvous @ Samsung spaces around the city of lights and its surroundings, including the Olympic Park, the Olympic & Paralympic Village, and the Main Press Centre, as well as Samsung Galaxy Charging Stations at key Olympic and Paralympic Games venues, where visitors will get to experience the latest Galaxy innovations. Check out Samsung’s “Open always wins” campaign on Samsung’s YouTube channel:

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a Worldwide Olympic and Paralympic Partner, today launched a new documentary series designed to spotlight skateboarding, breaking, and surfing on the Road to Paris 2024. The series, produced in collaboration with the Street League Skateboarding (SLS), Pro Breaking Tour (PBT) and World Surf League (WSL), will feature three short docu-series: “Concrete Dreams”, “Breaking Boundaries”, and “The Next Wave.”

The first in the series, “Concrete Dreams”, which spotlights the skateboarding community’s journey to the Olympics, is now live on Samsung’s YouTube Channel and will be screened for fans at the SLS San Diego championship tour event on April 20. The breaking and surfing series will be released on April 25 and May 21 respectively, and premiere at PBT’s Atlanta event and WSL’s event in Tahiti.

Starring sport legends Shaun Tomson, Eric Koston and David “Kid David” Shreibman alongside Olympic athletes Johanne Defay (Surfing, France), Sky Brown (Skateboarding, Great Britain), Grace “Sunny” Choi (Breaking, USA) and many more, the project celebrates the communities that lie at the heart of each sport as they get set to open themselves to the world this summer.

This new project is a key part of Samsung’s Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024 campaign, ‘Open always wins,’ which claims that with an open mind, anything is possible — a motto these communities live by every day. Produced in collaboration with the SLS, PBT and WSL, the docu-series explores the iconic subcultures of each sport, their shared belief in openness and the impact that being part of the Olympic Games has on their communities — past, present and future.

The synopsis of the skateboarding documentary unveiled today is as follows:

• Concrete Dreams: From the birth of street skateboarding in the 1980s to its consecration at the Olympic Games Paris 2024, this is the story of a community built on one unspoken rule – Respect. It encourages you to see the world a different way, to go create and always get back up, no matter how often you fall.

The synopses of next documentaries in the series are as follows:

• Breaking Boundaries: As breakers get ready for their Olympic Games Paris 2024 debut, this is the story of a global community born from the streets and shooting for the stars. It is a celebration of breaking as an explosion of energy and soul that gives you a sense of expression and belonging and encourages you to do something we’ve never seen before.

• The Next Wave: Surf legends and icons in the making share their story as they embark on their journey to Paris 2024. It is the ultimate love story between them and the ocean as they prepare to take that leap and a celebration of surf as a way of life, passed down to generations, and a culture that’s not only survived but gotten stronger.

“Samsung supports and celebrates with the skateboarding, breaking, and surfing communities as they continue on an incredible journey to the Olympic stage,” said Stephanie Choi, EVP & Head of Marketing of Mobile eXperience Business at Samsung Electronics. “We’re honored to tell their stories and help shine light on these sports communities for wider audiences through this docu-series. We hope they inspire many to push boundaries, support each other and always stay open.”

“We were really excited to partner with Samsung on this docu-series and share our story and our culture with the whole world,” said Tim Greenberg, WSL EVP, Content Strategy and Production. “Surfing is unlike any other sport on the planet. This is such an amazing opportunity to open up our community and celebrate what brings us all together.”

“This is a big year for us and our sport. The future of women surfers is really bright, and the Olympic Games give us that long-term vision,” said Johanne Defay (Surfing, France). “They are a chance for us to really show the world what surfing is all about. Not only our skill on the waves, but what we stand for as a community — committed to giving back to our sport and to our planet — and “The Next Wave” truly honors that.”

“Everyone looks out for each other, that’s the special thing about having this small community,” said John John Florence (Surfing, USA). “It’s exciting to be able to open our community to the world with this documentary.”

“Finding Skateboarding was like falling in love for the first time,” said Rayssa Leal (Skateboarding, Brazil). “I’m so excited to share our story with this documentary and show young girls what skateboarding is all about.”

“Skateboarding is a chance for people to show 100% of themselves and really push their own limits,” said Jagger Eaton (Skateboarding, USA). What if you’re one morning away from making all your dreams come true? You never know how close you are to success. Hope you guys love the documentary as much as I did! I’m stoked to share our journey with you.”

“Skateboarding is all about freedom, you can just pick up your board and go anywhere. It’s like becoming a kid again,” said Aurelien Giraud (Skateboarding, France). “I hope our story inspires you to pick up that skateboard and enjoy the ride.”

“Breaking is special. When I’m dancing, it’s like nothing matters in the world except for me just being me,” said Grace “Sunny” Choi (Breaking, USA). “There’s going to be a lot of great opportunities coming out of the Olympic Games from the added awareness and hopefully also more parents wanting to put their kids into breaking. I hope this documentary makes you as excited as we are to share this culture with the world.”

“This was such an exciting project to be a part of,” said American skateboarding icon and entrepreneur, Eric Koston, who lent his perspective to “Concrete Dreams”. “Our sport has such a deep connection to film. To see these voices come together to celebrate our sport, our journey, and our heritage is huge.”

In addition to the screenings at SLS, PBT and WSL events, the docu-series will go live on Samsung’s YouTube channel. Visit YouTube to watch “Concrete Dreams” and check out the trailers for upcoming documentaries.