The exhibition

You enter through a dark chamber and find yourself in a stadium: you are greeted by terraces full of people, applause, and the opening music of the Games.

Running zone: to run, you need feet and muscles

A track, 25 m long. You take position on the starting blocks. When you hear the signal, the stopwatch starts and it's "go": pit yourself against the cheetah, the ostrich, the zebra...and the snail. The winner? The cheetah, which is the fastest land animal: it can reach 120 kph. How? And why? Everything is explained very clearly. The loser? The snail, of course - it doesn't have any feet! And yet, it is able to climb vertical surfaces (tree trunks, walls, etc.), even head down! Astonishing, isn't it? Just try doing it yourself...

Jumping zone: to jump, you also need tendons, ligaments, and joints. Muscles need energy.

On the floor, a carpet 14 m long. At the starting point, you and a flea, a kangaroo, a tree frog, an impala, and a hippopotamus. The winner? The kangaroo. Why, how - it's all explained . A flea? That's easy, you're going to win! True, it doesn't jump very far, but did you know that it can jump up to 120 times its own length?

Shooting zone: different systems depend on the field of vision, reflexes, speed, and precision.

How do the chameleon, the llama, and the seagull do it?
You go into a darkened shooting gallery. On the walls, a forest scene and 16 pairs of eyes - green or red - which light up at random. You have to spot the pair of eyes that lights up and push the button of the same colour. So you can see what is meant by a field of vision, reflexes, and speed.
You also have to throw foam balls into a "funnel" protected by a rotating target-disc. See a hole? Quick, throw! Haveyou good reflexes? Are you fast and accurate?
Afterwards you will appreciate the qualities needed by a good Olympic shooter: concentration, relaxation, patience, and good muscles, as well as being accurate and fast.

Swimming zone: hydrodynamics.

You simulate a race in a swimming pool. You turn a handle to make the competitors advance. The winner? The swordfish, thanks to its way of moving.The shark is good too, thanks to its skin, which is supple and absorbs turbulence. And the swimming techniques that people use? The crawl, the breaststroke, the backstroke, and the butterfly: we imitate animals, of course, and our swimsuits and our flippers copy their physical characteristics.

Orienteering zone: a variety of techniques: sight, smell...

A map and a compass: you have to find 5 markers that have been well hidden around the room. Keep on course. What do you need to succeed in this kind of test?
Find out how the pigeon, the salmon, the millipede, and the bonobo orient themselves. Their techniques are bizarre, as you'll see. The bonobo, for example, doesn't have a good memory, so it marks its trail. Just like in a fairy tale.

Final zone: the ideal athlete.

Our super athlete: a statue 2 metres high, in three dimensions. He has appropriated the characteristics needed for all five disciplines. He slips smoothly through the water and the wind. He can see all around. He runs so fast...
At the end of the day, it's by imitating the animals that our super athlete achieves super performances! In other words, nature still has a lot to teach us...That's natural science.