— Posted on March 27, 2023
On a map of France, the department of Yonne stands out as obvious for teams or delegations looking for a base camp before the Paris 2024 Games. Less than an hour by train from the capital, everything just 200 km of highway. Three times nothing.
But the assets of the Yonne are not limited to its geographical location alone. The department has built up a solid and diversified CPJ (Games Preparation Center) offer. It has also created a label to bring together its cities and their driving forces around the Olympic and Paralympic project.
Explanations from Philippe Lala, Yonne 24 territorial project director.
FrancsJeux: What is, in detail, your offer from CPJ?
Philip Lala : Our offer lists six CPJs, in six different sports and in four towns in the department. In Auxerre, the prefecture of Yonne, the AJA football stadium (photo above), with its main pitch, its annexes, its weight training and recovery center, and the Rugby Club Auxerrois stadium, equipped four courts, a weight training area and a balneotherapy centre. In Sens, the second city of the department, the sports shooting center and the volleyball hall. In Brienon-sur-Armançon, the archery range, where two Games medalists were trained, Olympic for Bérangère Schuh and Paralympic for Fabrice Meunier. Finally, our offer is completed by the Saint-Florentin athletics stadium, whose club is chaired by Sébastien Maillard, semi-finalist in the 400m hurdles at the 2003 Worlds.
What are the advantages of this equipment and of the Yonne department?
Their habit of the high level. The equipment selected by the Paris 2024 OCOG in its CPJ catalog is regularly used by elite athletes or clubs. They have all been modernized in recent years, in order to stay up to date and meet the standards of major competition. The Brienon-sur-Armençon archery range will host the Lebanese national team next month. The French shooting team often comes to train in Sens. In Auxerre, AJA plays in Ligue 1. Its stadium provides access to all facilities – pitch, weights room, recuperation – in a few minutes on foot. In addition, another advantage, the reception of foreign delegations is a strong will of the clubs, the cities and the whole department. Finally, the Yonne enjoys a privileged geographical location, just 50 minutes by train from Paris.
- How do you plan to support the reception of foreign delegations before the Paris 2024 Games?
- Our project is human-based. We want to facilitate the presence of teams or delegations in Yonne, by providing them with the human and technical resources they may need. For example, an agreement will be concluded with the nearest hospital center for optimal care. Our priority will obviously be to put them in the best possible position for their preparation and recovery. But we would like to be able to forge links between these athletes and the population, especially young people from schools and members of local clubs. We also hope to be able to introduce them to our territory, its culture and its gastronomy.
What impact/legacy could the reception of foreign delegations, beyond the Games, have for the department?
We see the Paris 2024 Games as a real departmental project, an opportunity for Yonne to unite and open up to the world. Next year, we will be a stage department for the torch relay. We have also created a label, Yonne 24 Terre d’exploits, to promote joint initiatives and projects around the themes of sport, health, tourism, the economy and youth. Its ambition is to unite cities and economic players around the Paris 2024 Games. We did not wait for the Games to act, but the event can play a major role, in particular for the opening of the Yonne on the rest of the world.
What types of delegations do you aim to receive?
We did not make a pre-determined choice or establish a priority. We are open to the world, ready to welcome countries or teams attracted by our offer. But we really want this adventure to be human and shared by as many people as possible. For this reason, we are more interested in small or medium-sized delegations, with whom exchanges would be easier and more direct.
