As part of its À Vélo exhibition, and in partnership with the nature and culture media of Greater Paris, Enlarge Your Paris, the Pavillon de l'Arsenal invites visitors to discover the "Olympistes", an exceptional mobility scheme set up in the run-up to the Olympic Games in 2024. Curious cyclists will be able to discover these urban developments designed as much as connections between the Olympic venues as legacies of the Olympic Games to improve links between the communes of Greater Paris by promoting soft mobility.
Saint-Quentin en Yvelines, Saturday July 13
Distance: 64km | Difference in altitude: 580m. Start / Finish: Place de Catalogne (in front of Notre-Dame du Travail church). 9.30am - 4pm (Gravel / Confirmed cyclists). Return by train from Saint-Quentin (km 35) or Versailles-Chantiers (km 45) stations.
No bike loan. Please bring your own equipment.
Free, compulsory registration here (number of places limited)
A route of great beauty, but more demanding. First you follow the TGV Atlantique's green corridor from Montparnasse to Verrières-le-Buisson, then up the upper Bièvre valley, whose unspoilt landscapes, so close to Paris, are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Most of the route is on unsurfaced tracks, sometimes simply dirt roads. After Buc, you discover a succession of splendid ponds, created in the 1960s, then enter the new town of Saint-Quentin en Yvelines through the beautiful Sources de la Bièvre park. Finally, we reach the Velodrome National, overlooking the immense Etang de Saint-Quentin, reservoir for the great waters of Versailles. After a well-deserved picnic, we head for Versailles via the Satory woods, then cross the Meudon forest before reaching Vanves and Montparnasse.
PAST
The Olympic Marne to Vaires-Torcy, Saturday June 22
Distance: 64km | Difference in altitude: 580m. Start / Finish: Place de Catalogne (in front of Notre-Dame du Travail church). 9.30am - 4pm (Gravel / Confirmed cyclists). Return by train from Saint-Quentin (km 35) or Versailles-Chantiers (km 45) stations.
No bike loan. Please bring your own equipment.
Free, compulsory registration here (number of places limited)
A route of great beauty, but more demanding. First you follow the TGV Atlantique's green corridor from Montparnasse to Verrières-le-Buisson, then up the upper Bièvre valley, whose unspoilt landscapes, so close to Paris, are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Most of the route is on unsurfaced tracks, sometimes simply dirt roads. After Buc, you discover a succession of splendid ponds, created in the 1960s, then enter the new town of Saint-Quentin en Yvelines through the beautiful Sources de la Bièvre park. Finally, we reach the Velodrome National, overlooking the immense Etang de Saint-Quentin, reservoir for the great waters of Versailles. After a well-deserved picnic, we head for Versailles via the Satory woods, then cross the Meudon forest before reaching Vanves and Montparnasse.
PAST
The Olympic Marne to Vaires-Torcy, Saturday June 22
Distance: 56km | Elevation gain: 280m. Start / Finish: Place de la Bastille. 10am - 3pm
No bike loan. Please bring your own equipment.
An easy ride along the tranquil banks of the Marne to the nautical stadium at Lac de Vaires, where the rowing and canoeing events will take place. The outward journey takes in Lac Daumesnil and Charenton-le-Pont, before joining the south bank of the Marne at Joinville. On the return journey, you cross the Parc de la Haute-Île and follow the north bank of the Marne to Nogent, where you can see the Pavillon Baltard, a vestige of the Halles de Paris. We cross the Bois de Vincennes from Lac de Gravelle to Saint-Mandé, along the little Alphandian rivers, before entering Paris via the coulée verte René Dumont.
No bike loan. Please bring your own equipment.
An easy ride along the tranquil banks of the Marne to the nautical stadium at Lac de Vaires, where the rowing and canoeing events will take place. The outward journey takes in Lac Daumesnil and Charenton-le-Pont, before joining the south bank of the Marne at Joinville. On the return journey, you cross the Parc de la Haute-Île and follow the north bank of the Marne to Nogent, where you can see the Pavillon Baltard, a vestige of the Halles de Paris. We cross the Bois de Vincennes from Lac de Gravelle to Saint-Mandé, along the little Alphandian rivers, before entering Paris via the coulée verte René Dumont.
