It is perhaps the soap opera which allows the Paris 2024 Olympic Games to last a little longer: Where will the Olympic cauldron end, a masterpiece which illuminated the world from the opening ceremony and which was visited by hundreds of thousands of people (perhaps even millions) throughout the summer in the Tuileries gardens.
If Paris City Hall has already affirmed, through its councilor, Anne Hidalgo, its desire to keep it a few dozen meters from Place de la Concorde, opinions remain divided. Even its creator, Mathieu Lehanneur, who has no control over the future of his work, has not given a definitive opinion. Thomas Jolly, director of the ceremonies, praised the ephemeral aspect of the games.
The symbol of a new transport hub?
But this is not the opinion of the mayors of the 16th and 17th arrondissements, Jérémy Redler and Geoffroy Boulard, who have a different opinion on this subject. An opinion shared for the first time this Tuesday, during a conference on the “City of tomorrow”, organized by the Palladio foundation, by Éric Donnet, president of the Grande Armée Committee: “Why not expose it definitively to the door Jersey ? »
An almost absurd idea at first glance but which would make it possible to have a new mythical monument between the Arc de Triomphe and the Arche de la Défense, which the elected officials defend with a few arguments.
A historic entrance to the west of Paris, the Porte Maillot district has been reborn in recent months and the end of its complete renovation. Having become a simple roundabout between Paris and Neuilly, the square which hosts the Palais des Congrès has become a real transport hub including the RER E (with the extension of the Eole line) and C stations, line 1 of the metro, the tram T3, as well as the bus station. In addition to the already heavy car traffic, the square has been equipped with large cycle paths and green spaces which form the link with the Bois de Boulogne. What’s better than a hot air balloon to celebrate all this?
What does Paris City Hall think?
Porte Maillot being located at the junction of their districts, the two elected officials, who spoke out this Wednesday in a press release, see in this idea “the continuity of the history of Porte Maillot, which, a hundred years already, then welcomed a tethered balloon.
“This project could be integrated as part of the additional development work planned in the Alexandre and René Parodi square, which notably includes the planting of new lawns and 500 trees,” they explain.
“The return of the cauldron to Porte Maillot would be a historic symbol of the legacy of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games and would strengthen the identity of Porte Maillot, an emblematic entrance to Paris. We hope that the Mayor of Paris, who is in favor of maintaining the basin in the capital, supports this project alongside us. »
A new candidacy for the cauldron, which should still be the object of covetousness as its capital sympathy, and the legacy of the Olympic Games which it conveys, are strong.