“Planche à roulettes” instead of “skateboard” and “figure” for “trick”: by proposing French terms, the Olympic Games offer a platform to the language of Molière, even if English remains hegemonic.
At the Paris Games, France set itself the mission of promoting its language in the field of sport, dominated by English, and of finding substitutes for the anglicisms of new disciplines.
Daniel Zielinski is the ministerial delegate for the Francophonie at the Ministry of Sports and the Olympic Games. He coordinates the committee that, with the French Academy, proposes words where they are lacking. And he assures AFP that linguists are working “with Quebec and Belgian counterparts” to find French-speaking words, not just those from France.
For these Paris Olympics, the committee focused on four sports that had made their debut there: breaking, surfing, skateboarding and climbing. Glossy brochures, such as “Do You Speak Surf?”, give translations such as “roll cap” for “point break.”
Despite this, “skateboard” has a hard time establishing itself among the general public, who are more likely to use its English equivalent.
“Loss of influence”
In anticipation of the 2028 Games, Zielinski confides, “we are working on the vocabulary for sports like baseball, softball, flag football,” all typically American disciplines that we will see in Los Angeles.
Two and a half months before the Games, the National Assembly adopted a resolution calling on organizers, participants, visitors and journalists to “use the French language” as much as possible.
“The Olympic Games reflect the loss of influence of our language,” regretted the rapporteur of this resolution, Annie Genevard (Les Républicains).
If French has always been the official language at the Olympic Games, thanks to Pierre de Coubertin, promoter of the modern Games, English established itself “as its successor in the 1930s” and even more so after 1945, according to historian Patrick Clastres.
The fifth most spoken language in the world, French has 320 million speakers.
Among the Olympic disciplines, fencing is an exception with its refereeing entirely in French: “En garde. Are you ready? Go!” Otherwise, English dominates all conversations between athletes, referees and other officials.
“Window on France”
But the Paris Olympics are a particularly effective advertisement for France, according to Mark Cruse, a French professor at Arizona State University in the United States. “Success in sport is a form of ‘soft power’ and offers a powerful way to promote a country internationally,” he explains to AFP.
“The Olympics are a window on France, Paris and the French language,” confirms Cécilia Jourdan, an influencer who became known by deciphering the French language for a foreign audience on her Instagram account @hellofrenchnyc. And “videos specifically about the Olympic Games have a much greater reach,” she notes. “The social media algorithm highlights our content.”
In the French capital during these Games, not everyone knows French, but those who have learned it say they are happy to practice it.
Richard and Michelle Murray, a British couple aged 46 and 40, are delighted to see their children taking the plunge. “They learn it at school and they try it out here a bit too, ordering things and talking to people. It’s nice for them to kind of practice and hear the language. It’s a good learning experience,” they say.
Gabriella Seibert, 25, an American designer, has also seized the opportunity. “Every time I go to a bakery, I try to order in French. They’ll usually correct my accent. So I try to sound a little more French.”
Fanrui Liao, 39, a Chinese tourist, didn’t try it. “I know Paris is an international city. You can speak English here. That’s enough for me.”