We must “save the legacy of Paris 2024”. We know he has been involved in sports politics for a long time. But just four months after the close of the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris, Patrick Weiten expressed his concerns. After the big announcements and the central place that sport occupied in politics before and during the Olympics, has the blow settled? In any case, the president of the Department of Moselle, also a member of the board of directors of the National Sports Agency and Vice-President of Departments of France in charge of Sports and the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris, points out finger the dry diet of the budget allocated to the Ministry of Sports. “It could experience a reduction of 270 million euros, or almost a third of its funding,” he said in a press release. Such a decline would have serious consequences, threatening regional planning and development policy, and endangering the very legacy of the Games.”
And to remind the State of one of its promises which could be undermined with this budget cut: “It is imperative to remember that in the fall of 2023, the State had made a strong commitment in favor of the creation of 5,000 pieces of sports equipment as part of the Generation 2024 plan. A commitment of 100 million euros per year, over three years (2024-2026), aimed at supporting communities in their infrastructure projects sports. However, recent budget discussions raise fears that this commitment will not be met for 2025 and 2026, thus depriving communities of essential support.”
“The Alps 2030 Winter Olympics call for sustainable investments in sport”
Patrick Weiten
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Especially since last December, an increase in the tax on online sports betting was adopted by Parliament: “It increases this tax from 100 million to 213 million euros. it is crucial that these resources are directly re-injected into the financing of structuring sports facilities such as gymnasiums, swimming pools, sports fields, in order to enable local authorities to ensure their development and sustainability in the service of sport for all,” believes Patrick Weiten. And to conclude: “Today, it is more necessary than ever to secure this funding, in order to ensure the future of sports equipment and support employment in the sector, particularly that of sports instructors. This initiative is all the more crucial at the end of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games but also at the dawn of the Alps 2030 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, which call for sustainable investments in sport, in the service of all our fellow citizens, from youth to the senior population, including athletes with disabilities.”
The appeal from the president of the Department of Moselle, launched this Wednesday, January 15, comes the day after Prime Minister François Bayrou's general policy speech to deputies in the National Assembly. A speech which in fact did not leave a central place for sports policy in France, which was contained in four lines: “Sport is a powerful factor of cohesion, development and pride. We have experienced a historic Olympic year with, before us, the Alps 2030 project. We know that it is at school that the future of sport is at stake. As part of the care pathway, for chronic illnesses, we must, for example, offer a new offer in sports and health centers.”
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