Unlike his predecessor, Régis Labeaume, who had closed the door twice to an Olympic candidacy in 2030, the mayor of Quebec, Bruno Marchand, affirms that his “telephone is open” if Vancouver withdraws.
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The Vancouver-Whistler-Sun Peaks Olympic bid project, supported for quite some time by the Canadian Olympic Committee for the Winter Olympics (OG) in 2030, has lost ground. A few days ago, the government of British Columbia announced its decision not to financially support this project valued between $3.5 and $4 billion.
The City of Quebec, fallen candidate for the 2002 Olympics, could it take over? Asked at a press briefing about such a possibility, Mayor Bruno Marchand showed an astonishing openness that had not been observed for a long time at City Hall.
“My phone is open. If the Canadian Olympic Committee, which had chosen Vancouver for 2030, said that it is no longer possible given the position of British Columbia and is looking for a partner, we will certainly discuss it, ”he replied. Thursday.
Many questions
Repeating that he is ready to “listen”, the mayor then tempered his enthusiasm himself by recalling that there were many issues to assess and more questions than answers at present.
“It should not handicap the City budget. It has to be interesting […] You have to look at the financial considerations. Do you know that there are mountain-related issues? What partnerships do we make? Is it possible? Is it financially sound? If the answers could be yes, can we have a chance? We will definitely evaluate it.”
Villeneuve totally opposite
The leader of the opposition at City Hall, Claude Villeneuve, is firmly opposed to the very idea of exploring this avenue. “I don’t believe in that approach. […] If I have to be Mayor Boucher of 2022 on a story like this, I’ll be happy to be. We remember that she was opposed at the time. It’s a catch, this story, “he reacted.
“The reality is that the IOC [Comité international olympique] is no longer able to find cities that want to organize the Olympic Games. No one sees any interest in it anymore because it’s become too expensive. Me, if Quebec gets into this, I don’t think it will be in the interest of Quebec, but in the interest of the IOC, ”added the head of Quebec first.
The former mayor of Quebec, Régis Labeaume, had himself flirted with the Olympic dream a few years ago. He even traveled to Lausanne, Switzerland, in 2016 to meet IOC President Thomas Bach in person. He had subsequently become disillusioned, judging the adventure far too risky and costly.
“You shouldn’t think about that. It doesn’t work, it’s utopian, it won’t happen. We don’t have the energy to put in on it,” he declared last year in order to nip in the bud a project by business people in the Quebec region who were trying to rekindle the Olympic flame.