(ATR) Paris 2024 leaders have pledged to deliver the "most socially inclusive and responsible Olympics".
Mayor Anne Hidalgo, who also heads Olympic delivery authority Solideo, and Paris 2024 president Tony Estanguet today signed an agreement with 2006 Nobel Peace prize winner Muhammad Yunus to deliver on their promises.
Eric Pliez, who heads Les Canaux, the City of Paris’ hub and agency for social innovation and business, also committed to the ambition, which is based on the ‘triple zero’ objectives covering poverty, unemployment and carbon emissions. French sports minister Laura Flessel was among other notable attendees.
This commitment follows the partnership signed between Paris 2024, the Yunus Centre and the City of Paris in December 2016 during the Paris 2024 bid phase.
In a release, Paris 2024 said the shared ambition was "to create a bridge between the world’s greatest sporting event and the emerging world of social entrepreneurship and the circular economy throughout Greater Paris".
The agreement aims to bring together all stakeholders of the social economy: to prioritize the social integration of people from less advantaged communities; to create significant employment opportunities for vulnerable and hard-to-reach groups; and to contribute to economic development by encouraging and supporting social entrepreneurship initiatives.
Core priorities include promoting local economic development, supporting social and environmental innovation and championing business and jobs across all districts of Paris, the Seine-Saint-Denis department and the Greater Paris metropolitan area, including those linked to hosting and delivering Olympic infrastructure.
Signatories to the deal have committed to work collectively to implement the "IMPACT 2024" program to maximize positive social and environmental impact.
Estanguet said the agreement would enable Paris 2024 to be "a catalyst for progress far beyond sport".
"This agreement is a great example of our ambition to ensure that France’s biggest sports event is also a project that will drive real benefits for our country and our citizens," he said.
"The Games must be an engine of change and a springboard for this emerging economy. We are responsible for ensuring that everyone enjoys the opportunities."
Mayor Hidalgo said the 2024 Games "must bring benefits to the host communities and their residents".
"The question of employment is clearly central to the legacy that we plan to create. Our social integration clauses offer an effective and proven tool to achieve this. We will implement them at an unprecedented level in the context of the Games: 10% of employment hours created will be reserved for residents of less advantaged neighbourhoods, people in long-term unemployment, workers with disabilities and other special needs groups," she added.
The French Olympic Committee (CNOSF) holds its annual assembly in Paris on Thursday. Paris 2024 will send a delegation but no significant presentations are planned.
Work is continuing with Olympic stakeholders to develop aquatic center plans, the most controversial venue for the 2024 Games due to rising costs and uncertainties over its location. A 50-meter swimming pool in Saint-Denis is the preferred option.
Paris 2024 will present its aquatic center plans to the IOC during the first coordination commission visit to the French capital in June.
A spokesman for Paris 2024 tells Around the Rings the project is progressing in the right direction.
"We are confident and moving forward with the IOC, the French federation and IFs," he said. "We want to keep our promises: an exceptional experience, strong legacy and sustainable budget."
Reported by Mark Bisson
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