The beautiful snowfall of the past few days is a boon for the launch of the 2013-2014 winter sports season. While the opening of the slopes at the Mercantour resorts is scheduled for next weekend, the thick snow cover at Isola 2000 allows for a preview this Sunday.
Yesterday, Nice’s Christmas Village, adorned with a mountain atmosphere, was the scene of the opening of the ski season for the Mercantour Resorts in the presence of the authorities.
Managed by a mixed union of which the Metropolis is the major shareholder, the resorts are also an essential economic tool for the economy of these highland areas.
But business also means investment to offer services that can face increasingly seasoned competition. That is why since 2003, 135 million euros have been invested in the two resorts, which has generated 70 permanent jobs at the SEM and over 600 indirect jobs, outfitting the resorts with 42 ski lifts: cable cars, gondolas, chairlifts…
This has allowed for the best revenue figures to be achieved with 13.5 million euros, a +23.5% increase, and a record hotel occupancy rate during the season: 65% for Auron and 63% for Isola 2000.
For 2014, a new investment program is planned.
In Auron, the construction of the Haute Plane chairlift, plus the implementation of snowmaking networks, is estimated to cost 8 million euros. In Isola 2000, reinforcement work on the altitude reservoir of Gourc de la Peur (estimated at 2.5 million euros) and the redevelopment of the snow front (studies in progress) have a project cost estimated at 4.6 million euros.
On the sports side, the azure clubs have continued their training policy, which is starting to bear fruit.
Two French Champion titles in 2013: one is Clémentine VIVALDO, French U14 Champion in giant slalom (Auron Sports Club), and the other is Mathieu Bailet, French U18 Champion in downhill (Inter Club Nice).
Four promising talents are boarders at the France Pole in Albertville:
Thibault Fouques (Auron Sports Club), Théo LETITRE (Isola 2000), Romain Vergnaud (Inter Club Nice), Mathieu Bailet (Inter Club Nice)
Finally, four racers are on the French Alpine Ski Team: Nastasia Noens (Inter Club Nice), Margot BAILET (Interclub Nice), Mathieu Faivre (Isola 2000 Sports Club), Marion Bertrand (Auron Sports Club).
