Tony Estanguet regrets that the Paris 2024 Olympic Games are “used” for political purposes. The headquarters of the Olympic Committee for the Olympic Games (Cojo) was taken over on Tuesday by activists from the CGT RATP. A punchy action that fits into a tense social context.
The president of the organizing committee for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, Tony Estanguet “regretted” Wednesday that the Olympics could be “used” for “other claims”, the day after an interprofessional action on pension reform in headquarters of the committee in Saint-Denis. About sixty activists had taken over the headquarters of the committee (Cojo) on Tuesday, an action claimed by the CGT RATP.
“We regret”
Asked after a visit to the IOC in Paris, Tony Estanguet first recalled that the former secretary general of the CGT, Bernard Thibault, sits on the board of directors, as well as the president of the Medef Geoffroy Roux de Bézieux, to ensure that social rights are respected in the preparation of the Olympics. “We have recently seen demands that do not concern the Olympics specifically but are more politically directed,” he said. “We regret, the Olympics must remain this space of celebration, of celebration (…)”. “Obviously, we regret that some want to be able to use the Olympics to make other claims,” he added.
He specified that he “respected” the action of the day before and that a reflection was in progress on a complaint with regard to material damage. “We know that the Olympics will be targeted, for purposes other than the Olympics, we have to manage to make sense of things,” he said. Calls to disrupt the Olympics, including the hashtag “#pasderetraitpasdejo”, had arisen on social networks during the protest against the pension reform.
“Not worried about the social climate”
Arrived in Paris on Monday for three days, the chairman of the Olympic Games coordination commission, Pierre-Olivier Beckers, member of the IOC, assured that he was “not worried about the social climate”. “It is very logical in a democratic country to have a social climate where people have the right to express their opinion, it is part of the preparation for the Olympics,” he added.
“The ambition of Paris has absolutely not deteriorated, there is no delay in the preparations”, he was also satisfied, welcoming “construction on time”. He also said he was “confident” about securing the unprecedented opening ceremony on the Seine. “Paris will be ready to host the Olympics of a new era,” he said. On Monday, he also felt that it was necessary to “continue to seek optimizations” in order to “maintain the budget”.
Asked whether the question of the presence of Russian athletes had been raised, and possible consequences for the organization, Pierre-Olivier Beckers, indicated that “it is premature to speak”. Asked also about a report from the Court of Auditors revealed by Le Monde, and highlighting “uncertainties” about the budget, Tony Estanguet said he took it “very seriously”.
Source: Europe1
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