Catalonia to seek solo Olympics candidacy if no agreement reached with Aragon

The Catalan government is set to ask the Spanish Olympics Committee (COE) to greenlight a potential solo bid to host the 2030 Winter Games in the Pyrenees in the event an agreement is not reached with the neighboring region of Aragon over where competitions should be held.

Catalonia and Aragon have until May 20 for a joint bid to move forward, and while Catalan government sources told the Catalan News Agency that there is still hope for a deal, they do not want to miss out on a chance to host the event.

According to a recent government-funded survey, 74.2% of people who live in the Catalan Pyrenees are in favor of the games authorities have described as a "historic opportunity" but whether or not a bid will move forward is still up in the air. 

And beyond the hurdle of securing a deal with Aragon or obtaining COE permission to go it alone, the event will also have to be approved by residents. 

On July 24, those who live in the Alt Pirineu and Aran area of the Western Catalan Pyrenees will vote on whether to host the Games, while the neighboring Berguedà, Solsonès, and Ripollès counties will vote on becoming "involved" in other ways such as by hosting training sessions.

Catalonia-Aragon dispute

After much deliberation over where each sports event should take place, on March 28 the COE, the Spanish Olympics Committee, announced a deal between Catalonia and the neighboring territory of Aragon to bid for the 2030 Games.

The Catalan government then confirmed its support for the agreement, but Aragon failed to do so. The day after the COE announcement, the president of Aragon, Socialist Javier Lambán, openly rejected it and said he would counter with a "fair and more balanced" proposal. 

Catalonia, however, maintains that the issue is closed, and has even suggested there could be electoral interests behind Lambán's apparent u-turn, while the COE stated on April 1 that it would move forward with what it described as the "agreed upon" deal. 

Catalan and Aragonese authorities met again a few weeks later and are set to meet once again on a yet-to-be-disclosed date, but are yet to reach a deal. 

Filling the Sink

Listen to the Filling the Sink podcast episode from February 5 to learn more about the contentious 2030 Winter Olympics candidacy.