“Châteauroux, where is it?” » On the roads of France and Europe, trucks have been relaying the campaign to promote this territory in search of notoriety since 2019. In this regard, the Indre prefecture, located in the middle of the “diagonal void”, will benefit from a big boost thanks to the hosting of sports shooting events at the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
« An incredible opportunity for medium-sized city like ours, which has suffered from deindustrialization and loss of population, to find itself at the heart of an international event”, rejoices Gil Avérous, the LR mayor of this small town of 44,000 inhabitants. “ Until then, we had no image other than that of a provincial town a little behind the times. This is changing! »
In his office at city hall, the front page of The New Republicfrom the Central Westwho headlined on July 13, 2022 “Châteauroux, Olympic city”, was framed like a trophy. Despite the initial desire of the French Shooting Federation to target Île-de-France, Gil Avérous always believed in the Olympic destiny of his city.
The councilor has worked since his first election in 2014 to raise awareness of his city, devoid of major ambassadors with the exception of journalist Michel Denisot. Focusing on events, Châteauroux hosted the Miss France election in 2017 and 2023 and numerous high-level sporting competitions such as the aerobatic world championships at the airport or triathlons. “ This lack of leading figures has long handicapped us. In Indre, there are no large head offices like Michelin in Clermont-Ferrand or Legrand in Limoges or emblematic factories”analyzes Jacky Thoonsen, president of the Indre Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
A feeling of pride
The Olympic flame has revived a feeling of optimism and pride among the population and economic players. “The whole world will broadcast the awarding of the first medal of the Games (1). For the attractiveness of our territory, it is extraordinary. We will never have so many journalists on site, who will make thousands of people want to come and discover our territory”notes Jacky Thoonsen, while Véronique Gaulon, president of Umih Berry (Union of professions in the hotel industry), is not unhappy with the opportunity to “reduce confusion with Châtellerault (Vienna) ».
Everyone hopes to turn the page on the long parenthesis of decline caused by the closure of the American base in 1967, ” a trauma “, according to Gil Avérous. “After the Second World War, the presence of the American military was responsible for thirty years of population growth”which peaked at 55,000 inhabitants before decreasing in the late 1970s. This revival has already begun: 52 stores have opened in the city center since 2017, while the population began to grow again in 2022. More than 200 households were seduced by the promise of a good quality of life and property prices, among the most attractive in France.
The changes in lifestyles brought about by Covid-19 have also benefited the south of the department. In Argenton-sur-Creuse or Gargilesse, the pretty 19th century bourgeois houses, accessible at the price of a medium-sized Parisian apartment, have been snapped up like hotcakes. “The increase in sales of goods has saturated the market,” observe Jacky Thoonsen.
The mayor of Châteauroux, Gil Avérous, hopes that the Olympic Games will amplify the phenomenon. According to the Indre attractiveness agency, 3,000 jobs are to be filled, particularly in the hotel and catering industry. In an interview with the CCI magazine, Thibault Lanxade, the new prefect of the department, shares this ambition: “Everything comes together in Indre to make it a region of the future based on the Vendée model. »
The Games, an investment accelerator
To rise to the occasion of this historic event, the Centre-Val de Loire region, the department of Indre and the agglomeration of Châteauroux have agreed to heavy investments in tourism and transport infrastructure. “The entire region will benefit from the benefits on all levels: economic, social and educational. We who had first supported Lamotte-Beuvron’s candidacy for hosting the horse riding competitions, which will ultimately take place in Versailles, could not miss such an opportunity! “, develops Mohamed Moulay, vice-president of the Centre-Val de Loire region in charge of sports.
Failing to be served by the TGV, Châteauroux should soon be connected to Tours (Indre-et-Loire) by the TER. The Centre-Val de Loire region plans to finance the extension of the railway line from Loches, possibly with trains running on hydrogen. And by 2026, Paris will be accessible by train in 1 hour 47 minutes compared to 2 hours today. The city has also undertaken numerous public equipment and accommodation projects to be able to accommodate the 600 athletes, reinforcements of gendarmes and police officers, journalists, international delegations and the public.
A chapel transformed into 25 housing units
Started in February 2023, the restoration of the Saint-Denis chapel in Châteauroux will make it possible to offer 25 housing units, for the sum of 10 million euros. “The Games were a fantastic accelerator. On this chapel, left abandoned for too long, the projects were at a standstill. We were waiting for an opportunity to make it something sustainable and useful for the region”admits Gil Avérous.
After the Games, these accommodations could be made available to businesses, particularly in the rapidly developing luxury leather goods sector. Located opposite the National Shooting Sports Center in the neighboring town of Déols, Pesi, the international higher education center, will accommodate the majority of athletes.
This site was left as a legacy by Chinese investors, who long considered making Indre the first “Sino-European cooperation hub” before turning around in 2020. “We still owe them many achievements from which we still benefit today. They are the ones who renovated the 25 of the 340 hectares of the American base where there are the most buildings”recognizes Mayor Castelroussin.
For their part, hoteliers are impatient to welcome the 2,500 to 4,000 spectators expected at each event. ” We are ready. Accommodation capacities in Indre will be sufficient”assures Véronique Gaulon, owner, for almost thirty years, of a restaurant in Lys-Saint-Georges, in the heart of the Nohant region, dear to George Sand. “Before the Olympic committee’s announcement, the town hall had voted for financial aid to renovate aging establishments and new hotels were built on the outskirts. »
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The National Sports Shooting Center, a reference site
The National Sports Shooting Center (CNTS) was inaugurated in 2018 by the French Shooting Federation on around a hundred hectares of the former Martinerie military camp in Déols (Indre).
The site was selected on July 12, 2022 to host the Olympic shooting events.
In 2022, the CNTS, the only European site capable of hosting all disciplines from 10 to 600 meters, has hosted 96 national and international competitions.
Aux Olympic and Paralympic Games, the outdoor field (skeet and pit) as well as indoor targets at 10, 25 and 50 meters distance will be used.
In total, nearly 600 athletes will participate in the events, including 12 to 15 French for the Olympic Games and around ten for the Paralympic Games. The French team has set itself the objective of entering the top 5 in the world.
