PARIS – Ever wondered what it might feel like to be an Olympian?

Thousands of amateur runners got that chance Saturday night, tackling either a marathon or 10-kilometer race (6.2 miles) along the same iconic route as the elite athletes who competed at the 2024 Olympics.

Opening up the route to the public is a first for the Olympics, according to the official website of the Paris Games. Combined for both races, more than 40,000 people signed up from 127 countries.

A few hours after the male Olympians crossed the same finish line, the amateur runners set off as music and cheering crowds hyped them up. The women’s Olympic marathon followed Sunday morning.

“We watched the Games for two weeks, and we are really in the mood,” said Parisian Régane Bonnot, 27, who ran the 10K race. “So when I was running, I felt like I wanted to do like them when they were in the stadium and we were screaming in front of the TV.”

She has run other races and described this one as having a “crazy” atmosphere. People were cheering for everyone, and the mood among the runners was friendly, not competitive, she said.

“I think that was the best way to end the Olympics Games,” Bonnot said ahead of the closing ceremony Sunday.

The route went through nine Paris districts and covered some of the most iconic landmarks of the French capital, like the Louvre, Eiffel Tower, and Grand Palais.

“I wanted to be a part of the Olympic Games,” said 29-year-old Samantha Eymard of Paris. She didn’t even need music and podcasts to keep her going, dedicating her 10K to taking in the city and observing the monuments illuminated at night.

“It was really nice just to look around,” she said, adding that the whole experience felt like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

At the finish line, runners got medals, hanging them around their necks as they paraded through the streets of Paris, taking pictures with friends and family. Many supporters brought posters to cheer on their loved ones, with some even holding up large, printed faces of the runners — reminiscent of the support the French showed their athletes during the Olympics.

Marie Pietruszka of Paris waited patiently for her sister who was running the 10K, smiling and waving a poster that read, “You are super,” on one side and, “You go, Popo,” on the other with the Olympic rings in the background.

When they finally found each other near the crowded finish line, Pietruszka beamed with pride as she hugged her sister, Pauline Pietruszka. The latter had spent the entire summer training for the race.

“I live in the city, and those parts of the city I have never seen like this,” Pauline Pietruszka said, adding that everyone was so happy along the route, singing and clapping. “It was amazing.”

___

AP Summer Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games