Val d'Isère will be on the map for the 2030 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, if the organizing committee's plan comes to fruition. It confirmed that the Savoyard resort, which was notably absent from the previous version, was officially included in the preferential plan that prefigures the map of sites for the French Alps 2030. A trend that was already evident in recent days, given the anger shown by Méribel, which would find itself deprived of Olympic events. Despite pressure from the local mayor, the COJOP stuck to its idea at the board meeting held this Monday.
Val d'Isère will dig into its pockets
The project initially presented to the IOC called for splitting alpine skiing between Courchevel and Méribel, as at the 2023 World Championships, which met all expectations. The experience of these World Championships and the proximity between the two venues (a guarantee of optimized travel for spectators and officials) offered convincing arguments. However, the COJOP changed its mind after many months of reflection. It's difficult to do without the iconic Val d'Isère, a stronghold of world skiing, host of the 2009 World Championships and the World Cup every December.
« The COJOP and all stakeholders wish to integrate this emblematic resort to enhance the alpine skiing events; discussions are underway with the community to make this integration possible while maintaining the budgetary balance of the project, through clear commitments. ", specifies the press release published Monday evening. The station should dig into its pockets and participate in the budgetary effort. The coming weeks will allow us to define who does what and who pays for what. Adding Val d'Isère is a minimum of 25 or 30 million » slipped Renaud Muselier, president of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in April. The COJOP is nevertheless confident about the chances of finding solutions so that the potential additional cost is not too significant and that the bill " be acceptable ", confides an internal source.
The door always open for Méribel
The COJOP estimates that 80 to 90% of the preferential scheme is now established. Among the questions that remain is the identity of the site for the Paralympic Games snow events. The town hall of Les Allues announced that it was withdrawing Méribel from the project, considering that " The new project does not respect the spirit of the Olympic Charter ", denouncing " a logistical, financial, environmental and symbolic aberration ". Stakeholders in the French Alps 2030, who displayed an almost unprecedented level of alignment on Monday, expressed regret that Méribel is not following up on the proposal to host the Paralympic events. A specification will be drawn up to find a replacement for Méribel – without closing the door if the resort changes position.
The final question mark is the location of the speed oval, between Heerenveen and Turin. A selection process is launched as part of a call for proposals to determine the host site for the speed skating events ", specifies the COJOP. The map of sites will normally be unveiled in December, the date of the IOC Executive Board, after new budgetary and technical feasibility studies. With this preferential scheme completed, and a team ready to definitively validate each site from a budgetary and technical point of view, COJOP is moving up a gear., says Edgar Grospiron happily. Without Méribel, for the moment.
