in Eaubonne, at the heart of American precision mechanics

At the end of the week, the first staff should begin to arrive. Then the rugby players will follow. And finally the other athletes. Between now and the end of the Paralympic Games, on September 8, the Val d’Oisienne commune of Eaubonne will see the most media-rich delegations, and the most numerous with France and China (some 900 athletes and para-athletes). Team USA will take up residence at Athletica, an international high performance sports center created thirty years ago, renovated for the occasion. As the Americans think big and leave nothing to chance, they privatized the 7 hectares, plus 13 others of adjoining sports complexes.

Amélie Oudéa-Castéra: “During the Olympic Games, a minimum of experience in state management will be required”

This Thursday in June, the 40 members of staff are on deck and passing policies: in addition to cutting the ribbon, the United States Ambassador is visiting. Denise Bauer, sir, her team and a few security guards with earpieces tour the owner and especially the new main building: the kitchens which will serve between 400 and 500 meals per day, the rooms with (French) mattresses releasing enzymes, the recovery course (cryotherapy chambers, hydromassage tables, hot bath/cold bath) whose occupancy schedule is, it seems, already full… The diplomat is seduced. His visit will perhaps precede that of the presidential candidates during the Olympics…

An internal app

On the stage, before unveiling the inaugural plaque, the president of the Val-d’Oise department, Marie-Christine Cavecchi, speaks with a smile of “a little Fort Knox”. American leaders have recruited a regular security agency at the Stade de France and a security perimeter will be set up around the complex; but nothing too heavy for the neighborhood, we assure you. The athletes will not sleep here – unlike the sta – but in the Olympic village, 13 kilometers away. They will get there with shuttles, dispatched from a logistics center. An internal delegation app will also make everyone’s life more fluid. A meticulous organization which also pushed the host teams to improve their skills.

The contact was made six years ago via a Cypriot agency and the deal was concluded directly two months before the lockdown. For Athletica (ex-CDFAS), which does not have the notoriety of Insep or Creps despite the many champions who have passed through there, it was “a project accelerator”. The investment of 27 million euros by the communities should also push the parapublic complex to live without subsidies within two years. The amount paid by the American delegation for the ten weeks remains confidential but the deal would be profitable. Especially since it participated in some of the work and paid for the additional services (air conditioning, bodybuilding, etc.).

U.S. Ambassador Denise Bauer visited the complex on June 13. (© LTD / Emmanuel Dunand / AFP)

The Ermont baker questioned about his flour

« They could have been invited elsewhere but their choice was “I pay so I can be demanding” », Underlines the general director, Arnaud Zumaglia, who is full of praise for the no-nonsense professionalism of his partners. No problems, only solutions. To become familiar with the way it works, he was invited several times to the Olympic center in Colorado Springs, to the Tokyo Olympics – not very informative in confined mode – or even to the Pan American Games in Santiago (Chile) – much more revealing. The leader of Athletica saw the spirit, made small individual touches and big collective designs.

Representatives from the various departments and disciplines also made numerous trips back and forth to Val-d’Oise. With increased attention to nutrition. For example, a specific soy was requested. The baker from Ermont was surprised to be asked about the type of flour used. “It’s going to be a great summer,” smiles Arnaud Zumaglia, who also went to Rungis at 3 a.m. with his visitors. There is no room for improvisation, because the Americans do not want to miss a medal for a detail that was not considered », continues the general manager of the premises.

The fencing team has not bothered: to train, it will import its own pistes, which it will lay on the 600 square metres of parquet flooring of the Luc-Abalo complex, whose new thermal sealing promises a temperature suitable for practice. In total, some 600 athletes from around twenty disciplines will train there while waiting for their events.

But not those whose competitions are more than an hour away. Thus, LeBron James and the NBA stars, who will play in Lille, will just pick up their outfits upon their arrival.