The Organising Committee for the 2030 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games is due to be formed in February. Martin Fourcade appears as the favorite to be its president. Challenges recently reported that Michel Barnier had managed to convince the leaders of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions of the merits of this choice. Philippe Manassero, president of the Alpes-Maritimes regional Olympic and sports committee, agrees. " I think that he is the best person, he explains to BFMTV. On the sporting side, there is really nothing to say. He worked alongside Tony Estanguet, so he has knowledge of what happened with COJOP Paris 2024. There really is an alignment of the planets which would be rather favorable.
Waiting for the white smoke, Michel Barnier was in Nice on Tuesday to visit the future local competition sites, accompanied by Mayor Christian Estrosi and the interministerial delegate for the Olympic Games Pierre-Antoine Molina. Despite the delicate economic and political context, Philippe Manassero remains convinced of the success of these Games. “Let’s not start out pessimistic, let’s start out very optimistic. These Games will bring together. Let's not repeat what we saw at the launch of the Paris 2024 Games, we have to be positive. I think there will be a very strong enthusiasm, at least in our southern region. Ice hockey will attract tens of thousands of spectators North American, Asian, Nordic. Figure skating will attract thousands of people from the Americas, Asia… I am very positive.”
