Seeing the summer games in the City of Love

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) - The 2024 Paris Olympics will wrap up this weekend with a closing ceremony on Sunday. And while many of us have been watching the summer games on TV, some people made the trip to France to experience the excitement in person.

Joni and Hailey Freidel from Vermillion were not about to miss this once-in-a-lifetime experience.

"Hailey and I have been to Paris before but we wanted to experience the Olympics and that was the primary reason," Joni Freidel said.

A decision they are glad they made.

"It was crazy because the Paris for the Olympics versus the Paris that we traveled to last time was night and day different," Hailey Freidel said. "We were told that it's called the 'Olympic affect' where tourists don't go and the locals leave. So you kind of have the cities to yourself. So it was just insane because there was no wait times, all the cafes were open, everyone was in like a really good mood. Really happy, excited to be there. It was like a very melting pot energy."

While in Paris they got to watch a soccer match between Brazil and Japan, some indoor women's volleyball and a very special game of beach volleyball.

"Probably t...