The Organising Committee for the 2030 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games (‘COJOP’) is currently facing a governance crisis, marked by a series of departures from its senior management (1). At the same time, the law governing the organisation of the Games is the subject of an appeal before the Constitutional Council (2).
1. COJOP facing a governance crisis(1)
Since December 2025, the COJOP has been experiencing a veritable exodus of its senior management. Following the departure of Anne Murac, Director of Operations, on 9 December 2025, and then that of Arthur Richer, Director of Communications, on 23 January 2026, it is now the Chairman of the Remuneration Committee, Bertrand Méheut, who resigned on 3 February, denouncing a “significant decline” in management under the chairmanship of Edgar Grospiron.
On Wednesday 11 February, the COJOP stated that “insurmountable disagreements” now existed between Edgar Grospiron and Chief Executive Cyril Linette. The executive board meeting of 22 February 2026 formalised Cyril Linette’s departure from the COJOP(2).
Two weeks after Cyril Linette’s departure, Michel Cadot is being considered to take on the role of interim CEO of COJOP. He will carry out his new responsibilities alongside Edgar Grospiron, COJOP’s president, until a new CEO is appointed. However, his appointment must still be approved by the Alpes 2030 Executive Board, scheduled for Thursday 19 March 2026(3).
These successive departures raise serious questions about the committee’s stability, less than four years before the opening of the Games. In light of this situation, the Senate’s Committee on Culture, Education, Communication and Sport has expressed its “grave concern” regarding the COJOP’s ability to organise the 2030 Winter Games. The situation is all the more critical as preparations must intensify following the Milan-Cortina 2026 Games.
In this context, Edgar Grospiron and Pierre-Antoine Molina, the interministerial delegate for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, were heard on 25 February 2026(4). Speaking before the senators, they sought to reassure them, emphasising that organisational adjustments were inherent to this type of structure. They also gave assurances that a reorganisation would streamline the work and allow preparations for the Games to get fully underway. Edgar Grospiron acknowledged, however, that the difficulties encountered by the Cojop had led to delays from the very earliest stages(5).
2. The Olympic law challenged before the Constitutional Council(6)
On the legal front, the law on the organisation of the 2030 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in the French Alps, definitively adopted on 5 February 2026, is already the subject of an appeal before the Constitutional Council. Filed by MPs from La France Insoumise and Les Écologistes, the challenge targets several provisions, notably:
Public participation via electronic means in decisions affecting the environment, deemed insufficient for a genuine democratic debate;
Security measures, including a ‘ban on entry’ to certain venues and vehicle inspections by private security guards, which raise questions regarding individual liberty and the principle of equality(7) ;
The expropriation of property for the Olympic villages, criticised for its vagueness and the risk of harm to owners;
The extension until 2027 of the trial of algorithmic video surveillance, which is likely to restrict the right to an effective remedy.
The Constitutional Council has not yet ruled on the legality of the provisions of the law.
Discover the news from:
- the Sports Law department