© Stade de France ®
Macary, Zublena et Regembal
Costantini - Architectes
ADAGP - Paris - 2002
|
|
ATHLETES' VILLAGE  |
 VILLAGE OFFICALLY OPENED
The Athletes Village was officially inaugurated on Wednesday at the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris. Since 15 August, the best athletes on the planet have been gathering at the Village, where they’re enjoying a warm welcome and some home comforts.
 |
| Maison internationale Paris 2003 Saint-Denis |
A friendly place to be
The birds were in fine voice on Wednesday morning in the verdant setting of the Athletes Village at the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris (CIUP). They were obviously feeling right at home, as were the athletes and officials calmly going about their business, strolling between the modern and classical buildings in the pastoral grounds. That was the scene as a delegation including Pierre Castagnou, the Mayor of the 14th arrondissement and Organising Committee President Jean Dussourd gathered to officially inaugurate the site. A snip of a ribbon and the ceremony was over! “We wanted to make this a friendly place – a symbol of friendship between people ”, commented Jean Dussourd.
French and Belgians under the same roof
Athletes and delegations from all over the world will be rubbing shoulders in this heart-warming melting pot. Fittingly, the CIUP was conceived just after the First World Car as a place of reconciliation between peoples affected by conflict. Now, in the next century, athletes from all over our planet - Kenya, USA, Belgium, Israel and, of course, France, to mention just a few - are living in harmony in the Cité. The Deutsch de la Meurthe pavilion, for example, is housing no less than 30 delegations, while the Biermans-Lapotre pavilion is temporary home to the French, Belgian, Monegasque and Qatari envoys. The athletes have not been allocated their accommodation by chance either; geographical, language and security conditions have all been taken into consideration, as have the comfort requirements of some of the world’s top athletes.
 |
| Paris 2003 Saint-Denis |
Maurice Greene has his own room
A handful of countries including Morocco have preferred to find accommodation elsewhere, but the vast majority are here. The American stars of the sport have all booked rooms, Maurice Greene and his compatriots certainly didn’t want to miss out on the hospitality and warmth of the Cité. The multimedia room, infirmary, Post Office, round the clock restaurant and hair salon are all here. "The salon is proving to be a real hit," says Village manager Sylvie Le Mau: “We’ve had more than 50 clients since the start of the week. Our hair stylists are ready and waiting to give you the cut of your dreams!.” The chances are the salon will soon be booked out too, because nearly 3,000 athletes will be crossing paths in the Village over the course of the competition. Looks like those birds are gonna need some reinforcements!
|
|
|
|
