The major budget cuts are officially launched in Nice. And the chainsaw! The new mayor Eric Ciotti thus presented on Thursday an annual savings plan of 60 million euros to finance tax cuts, in the process denting the expenses of his predecessor Christian Estrosi. In addition to the reception costs and the municipal magazine, the elected UDR, ally of the RN, has clearly targeted three major sporting events.
Eric Ciotti thus announces that he will no longer grant the slightest subsidy to the Ironman 70.3 world championship and the Ultra-trail Nice Côte d’Azur by UTMB, both scheduled for September, as well as the international pétanque tournament (in August). These last two meetings are simply subject to cancellation from the 2026 edition due to the vast savings plan desired by the new mayor. This will not be the case for the Ironman 70.3 world championship, the organizers having confirmed this Friday that this next edition will take place, as will the mass triathlon event scheduled for June 28.
The UTMB group “in the middle of the crisis”
“We are choosing to refocus spending on the priorities of the people of Nice. Each euro saved = lower tax”, explains Eric Ciotti on his social networks, announcing a saving of 2.65 million euros around these three sporting events, “canceled” in the long term. On the other hand, the organizers are taking the blow very badly.
“We are in the middle of the crisis,” says Nice-Morning Catherine Poletti, president of the UTMB trail group. We had no contact with the town hall. We are in shock at a brutal decision. Two days ago we were told that the grant would be withdrawn, and this Thursday is our test. » This Friday afternoon, the UTMB group has not yet decided, as evidenced by its press release.
Doubt surrounds the 2026 edition of the UTMB race
“Discussions are underway with the city of Nice services regarding the 2026 edition of Nice Côte d’Azur by UTMB,” he explains. The UTMB Group teams are fully mobilized to maintain the edition scheduled for September 24 to 27. We will communicate in due course once these discussions are concluded. » The same feeling of incomprehension accompanies the famous Ironman triathlon group, based every year in Nice since 2005 and whose programming of new Ironman 70.3 World Championships, in 2028, or even in 2030, now seems compromised.
Our file on Nice
The teams of the International de Pétanque Métropole Nice Côte d’Azur have not yet communicated, but this competition is clearly threatened by the success of Eric Ciotti against Christian Estrosi during the last municipal elections. The savings plan targeted by the elected UDR is supposed to finance a reduction in local taxes of 51 million euros. This flagship promise of Eric Ciotti’s campaign must be voted on this Friday during a municipal council meeting.
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