Paris 2024 Olympics: “We were totally overwhelmed by the excitement surrounding the Olympic Flame”, meeting with the conductor of this exceptional project

An exceptional project for Benoît Probst from Gard, who shared the adventure with his son Augustin Midi Libre – D.R.

An adventure with technical constraints and unparalleled timing. Midi Libre – D.R.

Un projet d'exception pour le Gardois Benoît Probst, qui a partagé l'aventure avec son fils Augustin Midi Libre – D.R.

Rencontre avec Benoît Probst, directeur technique de ce projet de la Flamme olympique des JO de Paris 2024, avant sa conférence dans le Gard ce mardi 3 décembre.

How did you come to work on this major project that was the Paris 2024 Olympic Flame ?

It was the Aimko agency, which won the contract to manage the Olympic Flame project, that called on me.

Did you say yes right away ?

It happened in two stages. I was contacted for the first time in June 2023. Initial discussions, around a project that still had a lot of unknowns. I was in a very busy period and asked them to call me back later. Six months passed. Honestly, I didn't believe it anymore, but it happened in December 2023. I quickly realized that the task was going to be complex 6 months before editing. But I had to do it!

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What were your main missions on this project ?

My role was that of conductor on all the technical aspects of the project. Understanding the constraints of all the interlocutors, synthesizing them, finding solutions and ensuring the implementation of all the assembly stages. In close collaboration with the designer, Mathieu Lehanneur, Aérophile, designer of the Ballon and EDF, designer of the basin.

Concerning confidentiality, how did you manage to work without being able to talk about it to your colleagues or even your family ? Was it difficult to keep such a secret ?

Indeed, it is a unique dimension of the project. We were sworn to secrecy so that the surprise would be total. With my close friends, I took it as a game! During the opening ceremony, I think everyone was happy to discover the result. It was quite funny with other interlocutors of the project, like the staff of the Tuileries gardens, or the curators of the Louvre. We had to establish trust and explain our needs, without clearly saying what we were working on.

You also worked as a duo with your son, Augustin. How did this father/son collaboration go? ?

A year ago, I decided to develop my business and share my experience. I naturally turned to Augustin, a young engineer with a profile very similar to mine. He accepted and joined artéOh in May, three weeks before the installation of the Flame. It was a wonderful experience to share this adventure with him. This project was a great accelerator of skills. And knowing each other perfectly well is an asset.

What were the main obstacles encountered? ?

The time, very short, was one of the determining issues of the project. There were some twists and turns on the location, and the Tuileries Gardens were not confirmed until early March 2024. We then had very little room for maneuver.

How do you get back to “normal life” after such an adventure? ?

Our mission was supposed to end the day after the opening ceremony. But given the overwhelming emotions aroused by this flame, with a public enthusiasm that completely overwhelmed us all, we supported the project and the operations team until the end of the Paralympic Games! The return to “normal life” was therefore gradual, in stages, and we feel like we took full advantage of it.

An anecdote that you remembered ?

The most interesting: during the final tests of the flame (without a balloon), outside the manufacturing workshops and in the presence of Tony Estanguet, how surprised we were to see a fire truck arrive ready to extinguish a flame made of water and light! A fire more real than life!

From the Rhine Opera to the Olympic Flame

An engineer specializing in the world of entertainment, Benoît Probst has been based in Aigues-Vives, in the Gard, since 2009. He, who has always dreamed of working in this world, was chosen at the very beginning of his career by the head set designer at the Opéra du Rhin. The Opéra de Paris then offered him the management of the set workshops. In 2009, he created his own company, a design office specializing in the world of live entertainment. Through the Aimko agency, he was chosen to serve as technical director of this exceptional project that was the Olympic Flame for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

“The Olympic Flame, behind the scenes of an exceptional project”, its story told by Benoît Probst, technical director of the project, and Augustin Probst. Tuesday, December 3, at 6:30 p.m. at the Marius-Ecole hall in Aigues-Vives (Gard). All audiences, free entry. I subscribe to read the rest