(Lausanne) The president of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, estimated on Friday that Paris was “ready” to host the Olympic Games, once again assuring that the holding of early legislative elections in France in the meantime did not worry him.
“42 days before the opening ceremony”, on July 26, “we can say it with great confidence: Paris 2024 is ready”, judged the boss of the IOC, returning from a visit to the French capital.
He praised “the enthusiasm that we feel across the city” and which “starts at the airport”, between flags announcing the Games, “spectacular sites” of competition and Olympic rings hanging on the Eiffel Tower for a week.
While the early legislative elections of June 30 and July 7 plunge the host country into uncertainty, he once again put into perspective the impact of the vote on the sporting event to come.
“No, we are not worried, and for good reason: on Monday, I saw with my own eyes […] total unity. Both the government and the opposition have expressed their wish, and even their determination, to see France present itself in its best light during these Olympics,” he said.
The dissolution announced on Sunday evening of the National Assembly also impacts the expected designation of the French Alps to host the 2030 Winter Olympics, which will be made official by the IOC on July 24, only if in the meantime financial guarantees from the State and regions are presented.
“There is a constitutional procedure to follow, which prevents the government from providing these guarantees” immediately, explained Thomas Bach, but “it is just a legal question”.
“All indications are going in the right direction” and suggest that these documents “will be delivered very quickly after the second round of elections,” assured the head of the Olympism.