BarcelonaThe last act of the first day of the Circle of Economy that has been celebrated this Wednesday took the title ofThe moment of Barcelona but it could have been said The time of the Winter Games. Among the speakers was the President of the Spanish Olympic Committee (COE), Alejandro Blanco, who is currently accelerating to try to convince the President of Aragon, Javier Lambán, that the current proposal is the most beneficial for everyone. “We have a small difficulty, which we have to agree with someone who must understand that these Games are also beneficial for their territory,” Blanco acknowledged in clear reference to the Aragonese president, although without quoting him. Where it has been very clear has been to list all the economic benefits that must bring the Games that Spain wants to celebrate in 2030 in the Catalan and Aragonese Pyrenees. Blanco said that in just 17 days, 2,200 athletes will come, 2,000 coaches and also representatives from more than 100 Olympic committees around the world. The great promoter of the Games also spoke about the media coverage and the great repercussions that those who manage to organize them will have. He has only recently spoken of “environmental sustainability”, one of the impacts of the Games that worries a part of the territory.
The first to defend that “games must be played yes or yes” was Jaume Collboni. The first deputy mayor of Barcelona even wanted to “remember that the authorship of the idea belongs to Jordi Hereu”, who was among the public and who received an ovation from the businessmen of the Circle. Collboni acknowledged that Barcelona had “a very cautious position to try to facilitate the candidacy”, but made it clear that “this does not mean that we give up giving the name of the city to the Games and offer to do events such as the inauguration” . According to him, “Barcelona can give the final impetus”, but he has already warned that “it will be essential to mobilize the cultural, sports and civil world” so that they can move forward.
Collboni said that at last year’s conference “there was a general lament” and that he had the feeling that in Barcelona “there was no project, no dust” and then stressed that “a year later we see people with projects to transform this city, both in the public and private sectors. ” “We’re changing our attitude and that’s good news,” he said. One of the tests, he pointed out, is the choice of Barcelona as the venue for the 2024 America’s Sailing Cup.
In fact, among the speakers was Grant Dalton, CEO of Emirates Team New Zealand and organizer of the 2024 America’s Cup, who said in English that the event “will make Barcelona great again”. The President of the Port, Damià Calvet, also took part, recalling the importance of this infrastructure through which 75% of all products imported and exported from Catalonia pass.