Will the preliminary phase of the Olympic basketball tournament go well in Lille, as Paris 2024 wishes?
We are taking the path, even everything does not seem to be settled yet.
The International Basketball Federation (Fiba), which had reservations for many months, has just accepted “exceptionally” to approve the choice of the organizing committee.
But under certain conditions.
Fiba is notably awaiting confirmation that its “requirements will be met, in particular those relating to the health and safety of players”, specifies Fiba in a press release.
In other words, if she takes a step forward by agreeing to play part of the Olympics at the Pierre-Mauroy stadium, she is waiting to be reassured on certain points.
It is in particular the subject of condensation and air conditioning that is currently getting stuck.
Fiba, fearing temperature peaks in the summer of 2024, wants the site to be air-conditioned so that the parquet is dry.
The problem is that the Pierre-Mauroy stadium cannot be hermetically sealed, which causes some problems with the installation of air conditioning.
The cost of the operation is also pointed out.
Each of the parties has commissioned experts who have not yet agreed.
"But the dialogue is constructive and things are moving forward," assures us Étienne Thobois, the Director General of Paris 2024. The International Olympic Committee is currently playing the mediator.
However, she is waiting to be fully reassured about the operation of the system, in particular because of the risk of accidents if the floor becomes too slippery due to condensation, the amount of insurance for certain NBA players being in the millions of euros. .
New appraisals will therefore be launched and new meetings organised.
Paris 2024 wants to be confident about the future.
Fiba, for its part, wants an Event test to be organized, under the same conditions as during the 2024 Olympics. This test cannot be carried out before the summer of 2023, as Etienne Thobois specifies.
So you'll have to cross your fingers for it to work.
Initially planned at the Arena Bercy, the basketball tournament had been split into two: the final phase at Bercy, the preliminary phase at Hall 6 at Porte de Versailles.
A site that had already posed problems, in particular because of the low ceiling height.
Under pressure from Fiba, Paris 2024 had been forced to modify its plans and set up the preliminary phase in Lille.
A choice that has not yet quite won over the international federation, which has long mentioned its wish to play the entire tournament in Paris.