Badminton - 2024 French Open: Viktor Axelsen, PV Sindhu, Carolina Marin and others test out Arena Porte de la Chapelle ahead of Paris 2024

"Magnifique", "beautiful", "increíble".

Three languages, but one common conclusion: the Arena Porte de la Chapelle delighted the badminton players who had the chance to break it in.

These words were respectively spoken by France's No.1 Christo Popov, reigning Olympic champion in men's singles Viktor Axelsen, and Carolina Marin, gold medallist in women's singles at Rio 2016, after their matches in the new arena.

The future Olympic site is hosting badminton for the first time at the 2024 French Open. It's also getting unanimous approval for the Super 750 tournament, which will serve as an Olympic test event.

“We’re really excited to be here. We've always loved playing in France," said India's Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, a member of the world's top-ranked men's doubles pair. "When we entered the court, we felt a really amazing atmosphere. It’s one of the best stadiums that we’ve played [in]. The feelings were very nice."

Chirag Shetty, his teammate, added that discovering the venue of the next Olympics made him even more excited about the upcoming Paris 2024 Games.

The Olympic rings are not yet there, but a piece of the atmosphere was, as fans from France, Spain, Malaysia and India were out in full force with their flags and chants during the competition.

"The venue is amazing. It's big but you still feel quite close to the audience," said French player Thom Gicquel. "It's classy, very black, it's really very nice. And from the outside it's magnificent too."

Viktor Axelsen: "Playing in the Olympics here will be incredible"

With its impressive size, black seats and lighting, the Arena Porte de la Chapelle puts the athletes in the spotlight. With its intimate atmosphere, the arena offers ideal playing conditions for athletes, who can see the shuttlecock perfectly.

Viktor Axelsen, Tokyo 2020 gold medallist in men's singles, was full of praise for the venue in which he will be attempting to defend his title.

"It's definitely a beautiful venue. It was a great experience playing there," he said. "The conditions are very good, great feelings, great lighting, everything is perfect, so it's definitely worth it to play the Olympic Games here. It would be great for sure."

"The entire venue facilities are excellent, very spacious, larger than the usual competition venues," agreed Chen Yu Fei. The player from the People's Republic of China went on to explain that it would be easy to adapt to this hall given the good playing conditions.

Adapting to the new venue will be one of the challenges of the test event. The road to an Olympic medal could well start in March. Some badminton players, like the Republic of Korea's An Se-Young, world No.1 and reigning world champion in women's singles, are well aware of this.

"Considering this competition as a rehearsal for the Olympic Games, it made me a bit nervous, [but] winning here made me happy," she said. "When I see it as the Olympic venue, the place feels even more special to me."

Arena Porte de la Chapelle: Closer to the fans and the energy

The Republic of Korea's An also explained why the Arena Porte de la Chapelle is special compared to others on the world circuit.

“There is a single light that illuminates the court, so it helps me concentrate more on my performance," she said. "It’s not much different from other venues, but the level of concentration is good. Also, the court is quite close to the stands where the spectators are, so it is nice.”

This proximity to the stands allows athletes to feel the support of the spectators even more. PV Sindhu, double Olympic medallist in women's singles, was delighted with the set-up, even though she is aware that this is just a glimpse of the Olympic badminton tournaments, where the fervour will be even greater.

“It's a big hall, it's a really nice one. The atmosphere is really good here," she said. "It's good to play here before the Olympic Games even if it will be different because you never know how it will be on that day. But the inside is really good and the atmosphere too because the crowd is fantastic. I'm really liking it."

Viktor Axelsen shared these sentiments. As Sindhu, he knows that the conditions in the spring will be nothing like those in the summer, when the temperature will rise both inside and outside the Arena Porte de la Chapelle.

“It doesn't matter if it's the same place. You can never recreate the Olympic feeling outside of the Olympic Games," he said. "Feelings are different when the Olympic rings are on the court.”

All the more reason to look forward to 27 July and the start of the Olympic badminton tournaments.