The Founding Committee of Paris 2012, the organisation behind Paris’ Bid to host
the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, held its official meeting today and have agreed on ground-breaking policy on transportation, venues
and dates for staging the Games. These will enable Paris 2012 to complete its
Candidature File to be delivered to the International Olympic Committee on 15
November 2004. The Committee’s decisions will significantly help Paris 2012 meet
the IOC’s requirements and aspirations for the future of the Olympic Games.
Bertrand Delanoë, Mayor of Paris and President of Paris 2012, said: “Staging the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris would help regenerate
the City in many ways, while meeting the IOC’s requirements. We believe the decisions
that were adopted at unanimity by the Founding Committee today significantly strengthen
our proposal in that sense and infuse more tangible elements into our Love of
Games, what we called ‘L’Amour des Jeux’.”
Philippe Baudillon, Chief Executive Officer of Paris 2012, said: “We are delighted that the Founding Committee has agreed on these radical steps.
Paris 2012 is restless and we never cease in our search for excellence. We are
always seeking to improve the technical aspects of our Bid right up until the
last minute”.
Full details of the plans will be revealed after the Candidature File is submitted.
The outline agreements include the following items.
Aggressive Transport Plan
An aggressive strategic Plan for Transport has been adopted by the Paris 2012
Committee, which will see a 28 kilometre Olympic Lane built on the “Ring Road”
boulevard. This lane will offer optimal transport conditions between competition
venues and the Olympic Village, for athletes and the greater Olympic Family. In
addition, public transport services between Olympic sites will be reinforced,
to guarantee that spectators can enjoy the best transport conditions possible.
A plan to accelerate the development of transport facilities for disabled people
was also voted in during the session. People with reduced mobility will now enjoy
improved access to the Parisian and Ile-de-France network, with the committee
aiming to have most of the metro and train stations accessible to disabled people
by 2012.
Sites for competition venues solidified
The Paris 2012 Committee has elected to form two clusters of competition venues,
in the west and in north of the capital. Two-thirds of the competition will be
concentrated in these two clusters, significantly reinforcing security, while
simplifying transport between venues.
Inside the North cluster, a “Super Dome” will be constructed, serving as a symbol
of the reconnection between Paris and its nearest North suburbs. This Super Dome
will serve as one of the main sporting legacies of the 2012 Games and will host
the Gymnastics competition.
In the Western cluster, aggressive regeneration and development planning of the
Bois de Boulogne will take place to allow the creation of an additional two hectares
of green spaces around Roland-Garros.
The Eiffel Tower, the iconic Parisian landmark, will become one of the centrepieces
of the competition, having been selected to start the opening competition event
for the Games – the Triathlon. The swimming leg of the Triathlon will take place
at the foot of the Tower in the Seine River, offering exceptional views to spectators
onsite and around the world. The Eiffel Tower will also host the beach volleyball
tournaments and act as the starting point for the Marathon and road time trial
cycling events.
Lastly, all events in the modern Pentathlon will occur around the historic site
of the 1900 Olympic Games in the Croix Catelan, while all basket ball and handball
competitions will be hosted in one single Pavillion, following a consultation
with the International Federations.
Dates for the Games selected
Today’s Committee meeting also saw the voting in of official dates for the Games,
if held in Paris. The Olympic Games will take place from 27 July to 12 August,
2012 and the Paralympic Games from August 29 to September 9, 2012, in order to
ensure the best weather and environmental conditions, as well as minimised traffic.
The Founding Committee of the Bid closed the session by agreeing to adopt as
of next September a Chart of Sustainable Development for the future Organisation
Committee.