The figure was announced by Bruno Marie-Rose, head of technology for the Paris 2024 Organising Committee, with the total exceeding the 204,680 who applied for volunteer posts during the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

Before the volunteer portal opened on March 22, Paris 2024 organisers said they were hoping to recruit 30,000 volunteers for the Olympics and 15,000 for the Paralympics, with a further target for the volunteer figure for the Paralympics to include 3,000 volunteers with disabilities.

Applicants must be at least 18 years of age on January 1 2024, be able to speak either French or English, and available for at least ten days during either the Olympics or Paralympics.

After applications close on May 3, those received are set to be examined between May and August 2023, with those successful set to be notified during September and October.

In early 2024, a Paris 2024 volunteers convention is set to be organised, with training set to begin and volunteer uniforms due to be unveiled during the same period.

The volunteer records for the Summer and Winter Olympics are held by China, with the Beijing 2008 Summer Games attracting 1.2 million applications, and the Beijing 2022 Winter Games exceeding 960,000.   

The Paris 2024 Olympic Games are set to be the first edition of the event to take place in the French capital for 100 years, and are due to be held from July 26 to August 11.

The Paralympics are due to follow from August 28 to September 8 next year.