The date had been written in full. It is no longer relevant. Retained " under conditions " by the IOC session as host of the Winter Games in 2030, at the end of July in Paris, the candidacy of the French Alps still had to add one more piece to its file: the signing by the Prime Minister of the financial guarantees of the State.
It was due to arrive in Lausanne no later than October 1st. Deadline. In the coming hours, then. But according to our information, confirmed by several sources, the IOC will have to wait a little longer.
Michel Barnier, the new Prime Minister, has asked the Olympic body for a few days' delay. Fully engaged in negotiations with the Elysée for the formation and then installation of a new government, the Savoyard would lack time to look into the French Alps issue.
The day of this Tuesday, October 1st, underlined with a thick line by Lausanne as the deadline to provide the State guarantees, will not leave him much. Michel Barnier must deliver his general policy speech to the National Assembly. A first major oral in front of the deputies which promises to be stormy.
The long-awaited document will therefore not be sent on the imposed date. It would be, at best, by the end of the week. Friday, October 4, no doubt. The letter signed by Matignon will then have to be included in the Finance Act, then ratified next year by Parliament.
Worrying? At this stage, certainly not. In terms of form and substance, the delay by the French authorities does not call into question the IOC's decision to entrust the French Alps with the organisation of the 2030 Summer Games. It could even be extended by several days, or even weeks, without risking causing an earthquake in the Olympic movement.
First reason: the IOC has no plan B. With only five years and four months to go until the 2030 Winter Games, the body no longer has time to embark on a new process for selecting a host city, region or country. Salt Lake City will not move back one step. Switzerland, selected for 2038, even less so.
For Lausanne, the French Alps are not only the best option. They are also the only one. In such a context, the IOC is prepared to wait before being able to slip into a drawer a letter bearing the seal of the French Republic, the need for which has often been shown to be mainly formal.
Second reason: Michel Barnier. The IOC knows it: the former co-president, with Jean-Claude Killy, of the organizing committee of the 1992 Albertville Winter Games was surely the most "Olympic" of possible Prime Ministers. His choice by Emmanuel Macron, at the beginning of last month, was welcomed in Lausanne and in the French Alps as excellent news.
Michel Barnier knows the impact of the Olympic and Paralympic event on a region, having verified it from the inside at the time of the Albertville Games. He sits on the IOC's Legacy and Sustainability Commission, chaired by Albert of Monaco. He carried the Olympic flame for the Paris 2024 Games at the end of June on the Glières plateau, during its passage through Haute-Savoie. The IOC has no doubts: it will sign the State guarantee.
When ? " This is not a subject", assures the new Minister of Sports, Gil Avérous. This week, he advances, suggesting that this signature is acquired and is akin to a simple formality.
