Will we see Phryge with a pair of skis in his hand or a snowboard on his feet, to promote the 2030 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games (JOP)? For now, the French Alps are only the “expected host” of the event, but some are already hoping to see the Paris JOP mascots return to action.
An online petition has even been launched to not abandon the small scarlet Phrygian caps, with large eyes shaped like a tricolour cockade, “fall into oblivion”urging the Paris 2024 Organizing Committee, Paris Aéroport and the SNCF to “reuse in strategic spaces”One way, the petition’s instigators argue, is “Continuing to embody the spirit of the Games”, “While reinforcing France’s image as a welcoming and festive nation”.
However, Friges’ story had started rather badly. On 14 November 2022, when the mascots were presented, they aroused sarcasm and scepticism. Some saw it as a chicken, others as Papa Smurf’s hat, or even a clitoris! Added to this was the controversy over its manufacture in China by the two French companies that won the tender: Gipsy Toys and Doudou et Compagnie (which ultimately moved more than 15% of its production to Brittany).
“The symbol of the Games and their success”
And yet, when the “enchanted parenthesis” of the JOP comes to an end, they have established themselves as one of the stars of the summer event. With glasses, sometimes adorned with glitter and sequins, on a jet ski in Teahupoo (Tahiti) – where the Olympic surfing events took place – on board the police river patrol on the Seine, in the metro, at the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games – Games that imitate children’s games – in the centre of the fun and fan zones on the streets of the capital… The Friges and their antics helped spread good humour during the event. They were a hit on social networks and on the shelves of authorised retailers.
“We don’t have the consumer sales figures yet, but as a manufacturer, we are at around 1,430,000 pets sold to our distributors”Alain Joly, president of Doudou et Compagnie, told Agence France-Presse on September 6. On September 9, the day after the closing ceremony of the Paralympic Games, his company sold some 10,000 stuffed animals. “Everyone loves it, it is really the symbol of the Games and their success”adds Sandra Callahan, general manager of Gipsy Toys, the other official Phryges manufacturer, which also supplies official stores and large retailers. “We committed to producing one million pieces by Paris 2024, and today we have far exceeded this figure, with just over 1.5 million pieces launched into production.”he congratulated himself.
Conservation wishes
The two suppliers are even reporting shortages of stocks of key rings or certain models of Paralympic plush toys, while the undisputed flagship products of Paris 2024 were available in the form of T-shirts, hoodies, hats or even pins. There are still stocks in China and 3,000 units have been reported in Brittany. Blue Francewhere the factory’s 135 employees continue to produce mascots, including collectors’ mascots (numbered from 1 to 2024). The group also plans to make Friges for Christmas. Doudou et Compagnie is also negotiating with the International Olympic Committee to extend the licence and rights beyond 31 December, as hundreds of thousands of mascots from Beijing 2008 are still being sold in China and from Tokyo 2020 in Japan.
What will become of the mascot costumes adored by spectators and spectators, which even British journalists are already regretting? Desires for preservation and even official reuse are emerging as Footix (the muse of the 1998 World Cup), Super Victor (European football in 2016) or even the helmeted bear from the 2023 Rugby World Cup have come a long way. While we wait to find out whether Phryge will go to the mountains in 2030, they seem, for the moment, mainly destined for museums.
