24 Km for Paris 2024 Olympics Games 2017 Edition

The Basilica of Saint Denis (French: Basilique royale de Saint-Denis, or simply Basilique Saint-Denis) is a large medieval abbey church in the city of Saint-Denis, now a northern suburb of Paris. The building is of unique importance historically and architecturally as its choir, completed in 1144, shows the first use of all of the elements of Gothic architecture. The site originated as a Gallo-Roman cemetery in late Roman times. The archeological remains still lie beneath the cathedral; the people buried there seem to have had a faith that was a mix of Christian and pre-Christian beliefs and practices.Around 475 St. Genevieve purchased some land and built Saint-Denys de la Chapelle. In 636 on the orders of Dagobert I the relics of Saint Denis, a patron saint of France, were reinterred in the basilica. The relics of St-Denis, which had been transferred to the parish church of the town in 1795, were brought back again to the abbey in 1819. The basilica became a place of pilgrimage and the burial place of the French Kings with nearly every king from the 10th to the 18th centuries being buried there, as well as many from previous centuries. (It was not used for the coronations of kings, that function being reserved for the Cathedral of Reims; however, French Queens were commonly crowned there.) "Saint-Denis" soon became the abbey church of a growing monastic complex. In the 12th century the Abbot Suger rebuilt portions of the abbey church using innovative structural and decorative features. In doing so, he is said to have created the first truly Gothic building.[3] The basilica's 13th-century nave is the prototype for the Rayonnant Gothic style, and provided an architectural model for many medieval cathedrals and abbeys of northern France, Germany, England and a great many other countries. The abbey church became a cathedral in 1966 and is the seat of the Bishop of Saint-Denis. Although known as the "Basilica of St Denis", the cathedral has not been granted the title of Minor Basilica by the Vatican. From : en.wikipedia.org/wiki/basilica_of_st_denis

The Stade de France (French pronunciation: ​[stad də fʁɑ̃s]) is the national stadium of France, located just north of Paris in the commune of Saint-Denis. Its seating capacity of 81,338 makes it the sixth-largest stadium in Europe. The stadium is used by the France national football team and French rugby union team for international competition. The Stadium is also the tenth-largest stadium in the world, and the largest in Europe for track and field events, seating 78,338 in that configuration. Despite that, the stadium's running track is mostly hidden under the football pitch, as no major track events have been held there regularly since 2017, when Meeting de Paris returned to Stade Sébastien Charléty after 19 years. The European Athletics Championships will be held there in August 2020. Originally built for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, the stadium's name was recommended by Michel Platini, head of the organising committee. On 12 July 1998, France defeated Brazil 3–0 in the 1998 FIFA World Cup Final contested at the stadium. It will host the opening and closing ceremonies and the athletics events at the 2024 Summer Olympics. Stade de France, listed as a Category 4 stadium by UEFA, hosted matches at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, the UEFA Champions League finals in 2000 and 2006, and the 1999 and 2007 Rugby World Cup, making it the only stadium in the world to have hosted both a Football World Cup final and a Rugby World Cup final. The facility also hosted the Race of Champions auto race in 2004, 2005, and 2006. The stadium hosted the 2003 World Championships in Athletics and since 1999 it has hosted the annual Meeting Areva athletics meet. It also hosted some matches at UEFA Euro 2016, including the 2016 final, where France lost to Portugal 1-0 after extra-time. Domestically, the Stade de France serves as a secondary home facility of Parisian rugby clubs Stade Français and Racing Métro 92, hosting a few of their regular-season fixtures. The stadium also hosts the main French domestic cup finals, which include the Coupe de France (both football and rugby), Coupe de la Ligue, Challenge de France, and the Coupe Gambardella, as well as the Top 14 rugby union championship match. From : en.wikipedia.org/wiki/stade_de_france