Roux de Bézieux replaces Grospiron as head of 2030 French Alps Olympics organizers
· Yahoo Sports
DECINES-CHARPIEU, France (AP) — French organizers named Geoffroy Roux de Bézieux as president of the 2030 Winter Olympics organizing committee on Thursday, following Edgar Grospiron's departure in September.
Roux de Bézieux served as president of Medef, which oversees business movement in France, from 2018-23.
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“Geoffroy Roux de Bézieux possesses extensive experience in the management and governance of large-scale organizations,” the organizing committee said in a statement. “He also played a significant role in recent major French sporting events as a member of the board of directors for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.”
He starts in his new role on Monday.
“I would like to thank the members of the executive board for the trust they have placed in me," he said. "Above all it represents a commitment to work as a team to promote both sport and France.”
Vincent Roberti was interim president after the turbulent rule of former Olympic champion freestyle skier Grospiron. Grospiron stepping down was the latest setback for organizers of the French Alps Olympics.
Grospiron was appointed only last year, after French biathlon star Martin Fourcade withdrew his candidacy despite being seen as the front-runner for the job.
Instability continued under Grospiron’s leadership at the helm of an Olympic hosting project that started behind schedule when conceived in 2023. When the French Alps was formally picked on the eve of the 2024 Paris Summer Games, it already was on the tightest timeline of any modern Olympic host with essential government sign-offs still pending and taken on trust.
Before Grospiron’s exit, the 2030 French Alps Olympics lost its chief executive officer following weeks of internal turmoil in February. Cyril Linette, who was replaced by Roberti, was at loggerheads with Grospiron when he left.
Since a formal handover from the International Olympic Committee in February in Milan, the next Winter Games also dropped Nice as the main host city amid a venue dispute when a far-right mayor was elected.
Confirming a completely new host city — as Lyon was earlier this year by the IOC executive board — less than four years from the opening ceremony was also unprecedented.
The IOC has maintained its confidence in the 2030 Games.
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AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics