The ‘Ten Golden Women’ of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games are settling permanently in Paris!

During the opening ceremony – entitled ‘Sorority’ – ten monumental female statues, standing nearly 4 metres tall, emerged from the Seine near the Alexandre III Bridge to the sound of La Marseillaise. This staging, orchestrated by Thomas Jolly, sought to redress the traditionally disproportionate number of statues of men in Parisian public spaces.

Photo credit: Amandine Goetz (Dix femmes en or / Assemblée Nationale / 2024)

A fleeting presence that has become lasting

Immediately after their remarkable appearance, the statues were welcomed to the National Assembly – from 23 September to 5 October 2024 – where they could be admired during Heritage Days. Finally, they found a permanent home on 26 July 2025 on Rue de la Chapelle (18th arrondissement), an area undergoing rapid transformation in the wake of the Games.

 

Photo credit: Amandine Goetz (Dix femmes en or / Assemblée Nationale / 2024)

Who are the ten women being celebrated?

These statues pay tribute to ten major figures in French women's history, from a variety of fields:

• Christine de Pizan (1364–1431), pioneer of women's literature
• Jeanne Barret (1740–1807), botanist and first woman to circumnavigate the globe
• Olympe de Gouges (1748–1793), author of the Declaration of the Rights of Woman and the Female Citizen
• Louise Michel (1830–1905), teacher, writer, anarchist and feminist activist
• Alice Guy (1873–1968), pioneer of cinema
• Alice Milliat (1884–1957), athlete and first leader of international women's sport
• Paulette Nardal (1896–1985), intellectual, journalist, figure of negritude
• Simone de Beauvoir (1908–1986), philosopher and major feminist writer
• Gisèle Halimi (1927–2020), lawyer, women's rights activist
• Simone Veil (1927–2017), Holocaust survivor, magistrate, visionary politician

These ten statues embody the rediscovery and public recognition of long-overlooked female figures, reinforcing the values of equality and diversity that are so important to the Paris 2024 Games. Their permanent installation on Rue de la Chapelle is now an integral part of the capital's visual and symbolic heritage.

 

Photo credit: Amandine Goetz (Dix femmes en or / Assemblée Nationale / 2024)

Where can we see them?

Rue de la Chapelle, Paris 18th arrondissement
Between Marx Dormoy metro station (line 12) and Porte de la Chapelle (line 12 & tramway T3b)
A neighbourhood undergoing transformation, at the heart of the new Olympic and Metropolitan axis.
The statues are installed along the street, in public spaces, accessible 24 hours a day, free of charge.

Featured image: Amandine Goetz (Dix femmes en or / Assemblée Nationale / 2024)