What a year for Chamonix! 2024 was rich in events celebrating the centenary of the 1924 Olympic Games and connecting with the Paris 2024 Games! What do such celebrations bring to the city and the region?

These past months have indeed been full of events and emotions! We even had the opportunity to kick off the festivities as early as February 2023, and I would like to thank the IOC for this, on unveiling our anniversary emblem during the Paris 2024 Flag Tour, which opened the Kandahar – the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup.
As we near the end of this period, we now realize its true significance, both through the historical work of refreshing our legacy and through the shared moments and the dynamic it has sparked. We reconnected with our rich Olympic history and focused on showcasing it, particularly through the meticulous research carried out by our teams in the municipal archives and in collaboration with external institutions. The exhibitions we offered, the book we published, and the restoration of the bobsleigh track are outstanding examples of the wonderful opportunities we’ve had to deepen our understanding of these Games, and to reveal the richness and profound legacy they left behind.
Additionally, if any reminder was needed, this anniversary also highlighted the ongoing passion and unwavering commitment of the people of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc to the Olympic spirit, its ideals, and its champions. The incredible public enthusiasm present at every event, the spark in the eyes of our youth whenever they meet their Olympic idols, and the excitement stirred by the Olympic Torch Relay are all testaments to the enduring vibrancy of Olympic values and their transmission across generations for over a century now.
The momentum generated by this anniversary, further fueled by the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, has convinced us that Chamonix-Mont-Blanc could play a role within the Olympic Movement in the years to come. Our region boasts undeniable natural assets, expertise, know-how, and infrastructure that we would be delighted to contribute to future Olympic projects.

Through celebrations, the Olympic legacy is reactivated! For inhabitants and visitors, what is the new legacy resulting from these various celebrations?

The Olympic legacy can be appreciated in different ways. In terms of infrastructure, we took advantage of the spotlight from the anniversary to study the built heritage from the Chamonix 1924 Games and enhance its value. One of the most notable projects is the restoration of some of the turns on the bobsleigh track. Originally constructed using dry-stone techniques, we made sure to reproduce this UNESCO-listed method to preserve its authenticity. Today, both residents and visitors can discover this piece of history starting from the hamlet of Pélerins d’en-haut. The installation of giant Olympic Rings at the entrance to the Olympic Park is also a significant achievement that will remain part of our legacy. They serve as a reminder to everyone of our city’s Olympic history, and the site’s photogenic appeal makes it an iconic, lively spot, which you’ll surely discover in November.
Even though it is harder to measure, the intangible legacy is of great importance. The success of the celebrations confirms the role of sports as a fundamental pillar of social cohesion in our region. Through this anniversary, the memory of Chamonix 1924 resurfaced, and we shared it with the entire population. Today, thanks to the Sports Club, which brings together over 4,000 members, and through our joint initiatives, particularly in schools, the people of Chamonix are more aware of this glorious chapter of their history and are proud of it. Our elders were pioneers of both the Winter Games and winter sports, and this tradition continues: since 1924, every Winter Olympics has seen at least one Chamonix native compete for the French Olympic team. Many of our young people dream of continuing this tradition, which is unique for such a small town!

In terms of options for sport, Chamonix is an active city in all seasons. How does Chamonix adapt to climate change and other environmental issues to ensure that its specific and privileged environment is preserved for the long term?

Chamonix-Mont-Blanc is indeed a major hub of Alpine tourism in all seasons, and at the same time, it’s a town with nearly 9,000 permanent residents. We are fully aware of its vulnerabilities and witness the effects of climate change daily, sometimes in very severe ways. To address your question from the perspective of sports and hosting sporting events, we work closely with organizers to reduce the environmental and carbon impact of these events. For example, the Chamonix Sports Club, which organizes the Mont-Blanc Marathon—featuring 8 races and 10,000 participants—has decided to implement strong measures starting in 2025, which I believe are steps in the right direction: allocating 40% of race bibs to participants arriving by train and requiring carbon offsetting for participants to account for the emissions generated by their travel to the event. With the Ultra Trail du Mont-Blanc, we are also working to improve their mobility plan within the valley area, a crucial topic not only for reducing the carbon footprint but also for ensuring the quality of life for local residents during this highly attended event. In short, we aim to ensure the long-term acceptability of these events for our residents.
More broadly, for several terms now, we have adopted coordinated policies to address climate change, together with our partners (the Communities of Communes and cross-border cooperation with Valais and the Aosta Valley through the Mont-Blanc Region). This starts with supporting scientific research, which also provides us with decision-making tools, such as Adapt’Mont-Blanc, which models local climate changes. This helps us adapt access to high mountain areas, manage the capacity of mountain refuges, assess the relevance of renewing our ski lifts, and even consider their reversibility, for example. We have also stopped all marketing efforts aimed at distant overseas tourists and are working on combined offers to attract visitors who use public transport. In this area, the Community of Communes has made considerable efforts—free train and bus access within the valley since the early 2000s—to reduce the use of individual vehicles in public spaces, thus minimizing their ecological impact.
We are also involved in energy-efficient renovations of both public and private buildings, as well as renewable energy production, which allows us to cover 150% of our electricity needs (excluding heating), primarily through hydropower. The full list of our actions is extensive, but our philosophy is to leverage all available tools to meet the challenge of climate change and protect our environment for the long term.

The City of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc will host the 2024 World Union of Olympic Cities Additional Trip.  The Union warmly thanks you for hosting our Members. What would you like to share with them at this stage as a preview of the visit? And what would you like the Union’s Members to return home with after their visit to Chamonix, in terms of both memories and inspiration?  

The visit of the World Union of Olympic Cities will certainly be the final official event celebrating the 100th anniversary of Chamonix 1924. We are very pleased to close out this particularly special year for our town, and more broadly for Olympism in France, by welcoming your delegation. Accompanied by winter settling into our mountains in November, we are eager to showcase the cultural and natural wealth of our region, as well as the iconic Olympic sites inherited from 1924: the ski jumping hill, the bobsleigh track, and our giant Olympic Rings near the town center.
This transformative power of the Olympic Games on regions, which you are surely familiar with, is particularly concentrated here—we are a small town—but the historical impact remains strong and vibrant. These dynamics, both in terms of transformation and community building, are essential for tackling the collective challenges that lie ahead.
Chamonix-Mont-Blanc may hold different meanings for each person who visits, but it is a cosmopolitan, innovative mountain town with a forward-looking approach. We hope that your members leave with the image of a beautiful mountain region, one that is fully engaged with the challenges of the 21st century, determined to maintain the quality of life for its residents, to respect its unique environment, and to be optimistic about our shared future.

After such an amazing year, what are your plans in terms of Olympic legacy activation for the next hundred years?

When we began working on the anniversary, having a long-term vision was essential to our roadmap. With climate change and its increasing impact on high mountain areas, many of our projects are planned 30 to 50 years ahead, such as the reconstruction of the Grands Montets cable car station (at 3,300m) and the Montenvers gondola to the Mer de Glace (at 1,900m). As for our Olympic legacy, it is alive and well in our Sports Club, where thousands of young people practice their favorite disciplines. Some of them may even go on to compete in the Olympic or Paralympic Games. Many Chamonix champions have already paved the way, and the community stands behind them to help them achieve their dreams.
As you can see, the pioneers of 1924 set the course for us in terms of two essential values: innovation and respect for an extraordinary natural site. In this spirit, supported by our long experience in hosting major international events, we are working to contribute to the development of the sporting events of tomorrow—events that are sustainable, socially acceptable, and inclusive.
In this context, we are bidding to host events for the 2030 Winter Olympic Games in the French Alps. We would gladly support a sustainable bid and contribute modestly, especially in disciplines deeply rooted in the DNA of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc and its mountain heritage. Olympic fervor, event-hosting expertise, efficient ski lifts, top-tier road, rail, and hotel infrastructure—these are all existing assets we would bring to the project. Let’s hope that the 2030 Olympic Games will allow us to experience this transformative power, impacting even our shared culture, an enduring legacy that transcends us all!