During a trip, the President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron, said he wanted to make France a "sporting nation", while Paris is preparing to host the Olympics in 2024. To get there, the government has presented a " Pass Sport ", an aid of 50 euros intended for the most modest children.
Emmanuel Macron wished on Wednesday to make France a "sporting nation" on the occasion of the 2024 Olympic Games, by marking in the Aube, alongside the former basketball star Tony Parker, the reopening of gymnasiums and stages. "This resumption of sport is also the starting point of a new long-distance race which takes us until 2024", year of the Olympic Games in France, the objective of which is "to bring back the maximum number of medals", but also to "really make France a sporting nation", declared the President of the Republic.
After a very high profile coffee in the early morning with Jean Castex on a Parisian terrace, the Head of State visited a gymnasium in Pont-Sainte-Marie in Aube to mark the start of the resumption of sports activities.
Arrived at the side of Tony Parker and the footballer Laure Boulleau, he attended a basketball animation and presented the "Sport Pass", a new aid for young athletes.
This "Sport Pass", an aid of 50 euros per child, intended for families who receive the back-to-school allowance or for children with disabilities, helps to finance registration in a club affiliated with a federation or, in the priority areas of the city, also to a sports association.
The "Sport Pass" renewed in 2022
In total, 5.4 million children will be eligible for this aid, which will be available at the start of the school year. The executive expects a utilization rate of around 50% and intends to renew this aid in 2022. After this meeting, Emmanuel Macron went to the municipal stadium to attend the training sessions of the young people of FC Pont Sainte Marie, and discuss with them. Emmanuel Macron recalled that the health crisis had been particularly "hard" for young people, who had to make "sacrifices" in their activities, especially sports, but he was pleased to have made the choice to "preserve them (. ..) by opening schools as much as possible ".
"This recovery is extremely important for the health of our children", as well as food, he also stressed.
Back in Paris, coincidence of the calendar, he will attend the final of the Coupe de France football at the Stade de France on Wednesday evening.
In the Aube, he hailed in passing "the good choice" of Didier Deschamps, who recalled Karim Benzema in the France team for the Euro.
Sport, a sector stifled by the health crisis
If spectators will be able to return Wednesday to outdoor sports facilities such as stadiums with a 35% gauge and up to 1,000 seated people, the match will be played behind closed doors, since it will begin after the curfew set at 9:00 p.m. Via the various Covid aids, the State has already deployed 3.5 billion euros to support the sports ecosystem, according to the Elysee and 100 million euros have been budgeted for this new device. This would already bring a big breath of fresh air to the clubs, who fear they will not see their members return after the pandemic.
The head of state wanted to show his consideration "for a sector which he knows has been particularly affected by the health crisis," said the Elysee. He was also accompanied by the Ministers of Education Jean-Michel Blanquer and of Youth and Sports Roxana Maracineanu, and met the mayor LR of Troyes François Baroin on the spot. To continue to illustrate the reopening he decided in April, the Head of State will make another trip on Friday, this time in Nièvre, devoted to the reopening of cultural places and the Culture Pass.