Officials in France Tuesday revealed plans to host the 2030 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in the Alps and along the French Riviera.
A sustainable two region, four cluster concept has been proposed in a draft venue plan officially named the “French Alps” Winter Games bid that the French Olympic Committee (CNOSF) has submitted to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for review. Most required venues currently exist, keeping plans in compliance with the IOC’s Agenda 2020+5 mandate to enforce sustainability in preparing for the Games.
If France were to be elected by the IOC to host in 2030 the heart of the Games would center around Nice and the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region where figure skating, ice hockey, short-track speed skating and curling would take place (in a possible new arena) and the international broadcast and media facilities would be located. An Athletes Village would be in Nice and the area would likely stage the closing ceremony.
The nearby Alpine zone Briançonnais would include ski cross, snowboard cross, snowboard and freestyle skiing.
In the snow region the Savoie zone would get bobsleigh, luge and skeleton at La Plagne slope with women’s alpine skiing in Méribel men’s at Courchevel. The ski jumpin and Nordic combined would take place in Courchevel.
The Haute-Savoie zone would stage cross country skiing in La Clusaz, biathlon in Le Grand Bornand and Alpine slalom in Val d’Isère. The opening ceremony could take place in the region as a tribute to the three former French Winter Games host of Chamonix 1924, Grenoble 1968 and Albertville 1992.
A modern speed skating oval does not exist in France so organizers could prepare a temporary facility in a convention center similar to that of the Milan-Cortina 2026 Games, or site the event in another country. No decision has been made.
No cost figures have been released but CNOSF president David Lappartient maintained that the budget would not exceed the 1.5 billion euros projected for Milan-Cortina 2026. He told reporters that the Games will be privately funded and that many of the Paris 2024 Summer Games sponsors are also expressing interest in the 2030 Winter Games.
Une mobilisation pleine et entière du mouvement sportif et des athlètes français à la candidature #AlpesFrançaises aux Jeux Olympiques et Paralympiques de 2030 ! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/oYGB29r8ay
— FranceOlympique (@FranceOlympique) November 7, 2023
Lappartient described the the project as “Sober, economical Games, where we will celebrate sport and our mountains.”
“The most beautiful mountains in the world, designed for the Olympic Games.”
Five-time French Olympic biathlon champion Martin Fourcade said “we have the know-how to organize these 2030 Winter Games and I know the stakeholders are fully committed. We are in a changing world and we want to write the Games of tomorrow.”
France is competing with established bids from Sweden and Switzerland to host the 2030 Games. Salt Lake City is aiming to host the 2034 edition but United States’ officials have said they could shift to 2030 if the IOC can’t find another host.
French Alps 2030 will make an online presentation to the IOC’s Future Host Commission on November 21 along with the other candidates as part of the informal continuous dialogue phase of the bid process.
The IOC is expected to choose one or more bids for so-called ‘targeted dialogue’ during an Executive Board meeting scheduled in Paris from November 29 to December 1. Last month IOC president Thomas Bach said the 2030 candidates would then be set for an election next Summer in Paris at an all-members Session ahead of the 2024 Summer Games.
However, if France is included in targeted dialogue plans may need to change as the Olympic Charter forbids hosts from being elected by a vote on its own territory.
IOC members last month approved a proposal that both the 2030 and 2034 Games could be awarded at the same time with Salt Lake City named as the only candidate for the latter edition.
