It is at the CDFAS, the departmental sports training and entertainment center of Eaubonne, that the Americans will set up their base camp during the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris. Information that we revealed on February 24. This choice is highly strategic for the delegation of 800 athletes and 1,200 staff members, the site being located less than fifteen minutes from the future Olympic village of Saint-Denis Pleyel.
A covered athletics stadium, a sports hall, a synthetic grass field, a gym, a dojo ... It is in a 7-hectare setting inaugurated in 1993 that American athletes will train upstream and during the Olympic Games . The site will be privatized for approximately two and a half months. Americans will also have access to facilities very close to Saint-Gratien, including the Michel-Hidalgo stadium, the fencing hall and the swimming pool (16 ha in total). "The fact that 90% of Olympic sports are practicable on the site was a real plus in the negotiations," said Arnaud Zumaglia, the centre's director general.
The amount of the transaction is unknown
If the athletes and part of the staff will be housed in the Olympic village, 245 beds - a modernization plan will increase the capacity of the CDFAS, which is currently 145 beds - will be available to the delegation. Just like a catering room (note: with a chef who will come from the United States even if the CDFAS teams will take care of the meals) , relaxation areas and rooms for the medical staff. By 2024, without privatizing the premises, American athletes will travel to Eaubonne during internships or competitions. Weightlifters will come just after next Christmas.
The amount of the transaction, which will change according to certain criteria including security, is not known. But the profits will be used to finance French sport, and more particularly Val-d'Oisien, the CDFAS being a public establishment. "What we really liked during the discussions (Editor's note: from the start of 2019) is that the Americans really want to create links with the population," continues Arnaud Zumaglia. Thirty volunteers will be trained (15 Americans, 15 Val-d'Oisiens) to be active around the US delegation during the 2024 Olympic Games. The same will be true for 2028, for the Los Angeles Games.
Summer camps should also be organized, in particular for disadvantaged young people who could thus have the opportunity to travel across the Atlantic. Finally, the Val-d'Oise Chamber of Commerce will also create links with its American counterpart, in order to develop agreements between companies and tour operators. "The arrival of such a prestigious delegation as Team USA is really excellent news," concludes Arnaud Zumaglia. Especially since this collaboration is long-term and will leave a real legacy in Val-d'Oise. "
Team USA wants to "leave a trace"
A choice made early which "allows us to anticipate our dietary requirements as well as possible, knowledge of the facilities for example, as well as to forge links with the people who work there," explains Rick Adams, performance manager of the American Olympic and Paralympic Committee. .
Team USA will therefore have four years to prepare and "speak with each of our Federations to identify their needs". More than a dozen sports will train there before and during the Games. “This site is perfect especially with the extension project which will take place in 2022, we will have very little to change unlike the previous Olympiads, continues Rick Adams. Whether for food, facilities, housing, the serenity of the place coupled with proximity to Paris ... We are looking forward to this partnership. "
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This will take several forms, sometimes extra-sporting. “Our athletes and volunteers will visit schools or hospitals […], we will meet the locals. We want to leave a trace of our passage, beyond the Olympic Games ”. The partnership will continue until 2028 and the Olympic Games in Los Angeles, with exchanges between Val-d'Isiens and American volunteers.