THE FILE The 30 personalities who will make the news in 2025

13. Vincent Bastide and the return of tennis cracks to the arenas.

Casper Ruud, Ugo Humbert, Gaël Monfils, Andrey Rublev, Holger Rune and Taylor Fritz… The CEO of Bastide medical brings champions to the arenas, on April 4 and 5, for the Bastide medical UTS Nîmes. Eight champions will share 1 million euros in winnings during this tournament organized by the UTS, a league parallel to the ATP. Vincent Bastide, 55, a business school graduate, joined the company founded by his father, the pharmacist Guy Bastide, in 1995. Appointed general manager in 2011, he became the CEO of this listed company in 2021. The Bastide group, which specializes in home health care and the sale and rental of medical equipment, was already a partner of the Nîmes Olympic and Usam clubs.

14. The urban renovation of Pissevin, “one of Jérôme Bonet’s priority files”.

Appointed prefect of Gard in August 2023, this former central director of the judicial police, launched in July 2024, in company with the City and the Agglomeration, the urban renovation work in Pissevin. In particular, they plan to destroy the Wagner Gallery, the epicenter of drug trafficking. State, ANRU, City, Agglomeration, social landlords have invested more than 470 million euros to rehabilitate the district. The State share is the largest, 96 million euros. A specific ORCOD-IN operation is carried out on degraded co-ownerships. On April 6, the two Matisse towers which housed the Crous university residences will be destroyed by lightning. All people within a 200 m radius will be evacuated. The towers will collapse in seconds. The last “lightning” in the Gard took place in 2004 in Valdegour.

15. The PG and criminal seizures.

The Attorney General of Nîmes was appointed at the beginning of December, by a decree of the President of the Republic, chairman of the board of directors of the Agency for the Recovery of Seized and Confiscated Assets. He nevertheless remains attorney general of Nîmes. We know that Xavier Bonhomme, head of prosecutors in the jurisdiction of the Nîmes Court of Appeal, is very involved in the field of seizures. In an article published in 2023 on Objectif Gard, the magistrate indicated: “The seizure and confiscation of property is the most effective way to fight against traffickers. » Before being appointed to Nîmes, he had worked as a prosecutor in Nice and had put in place a real criminal policy on seizures. His appointment to the Collection Agency is the fruit of this long work.

16. Béatrice Bertrand, innovative tools to prevent feminicides.

Having gone on an immersion trip across the Atlantic, the director of the CIDFF du Gard returned with a “risk assessment tool” presented during a conference, organized with Cécile Gensac, public prosecutor of Nîmes, on November 28 in Nîmes. She would like, in 2025, law enforcement, social workers, association staff, SPIP*, to be trained in this tool. It classifies the risk of acting out from moderate to immediate. She would also like to set up a consultation unit which would meet to make rapid decisions. Béatrice Bertrand, a lawyer by training, has spent her entire career in the CIDFF. She has headed that of Nîmes since 2008 and received the Legion of Honor on December 21, 2021.

17. Marie Dufresnes, first female secretary of the CGT du Gard.

Closure in 2025 of the Solvay factory in Salindres, elimination of 100 positions at Royal Canin in Aimargues… This public finance agent in Nîmes, who was elected secretary of the CGT departmental union at the end of November, should not be out of work this year. This young forty-year-old who has worked in Public Finance for 10 years, has been campaigning for the CGT for a little over 8 years. During her election, she told Objectif Gard that her grandfather was general secretary of the UD of the CGT of Seine-Maritime.

18. Clément Pellistrandi connects Nîmes to Corsica.

Tickets are expected to go on sale at the end of December. The founder of the airline L’Odyssey opens three lines from Nîmes airport on the last weekend of May. They will serve Ajaccio, Bastia and Nice. The announcement of the opening of this last destination had sparked controversy. “It’s a line that makes sense because it continues towards Milan,” explains this thirty-year-old. We would never have simply opened Nîmes-Nice. There will be a stopover in Nice. People who wish to continue to Milan will stay on the plane where they will be joined by other passengers. » Will it offer lines to Geneva and Barcelona as announced in October? “We are awaiting a response from the Barcelona airport slots. We are working on another Swiss destination. » This airline, created in 2019, offers connections to regional airports and charter on demand.

19. Move in sight for Olivier Lataste.

Le Cratère, the Alès theater, will begin major work in 2025 to transform its large room, redevelop its hall and create new spaces. On April 11, for its closing night, the Cratère will offer various shows and will transform into a nightclub with a DJ set. During the work, this national scene with 3,500 subscribers will continue its activities outside the walls. A rectangular marquee will be erected next to the swimming pool, at the Prairie. A real performance hall, it will accommodate around 450 people. Olivier Lataste, 53, a former computer engineer, converted to culture in 2001. He was a director of the street arts company Transe express before joining the national scene in Annecy as administrative and financial director. Since 2021, this Toulouse resident has managed the Cratère with the desire to attract a younger clientele and create links with associations.

Continuation of our ranking at 12:00 p.m.