The calendar is speeding up and the involvement of the Generalitat in the Costa Brava-Barcelona bid for the 2031 Ryder Cup is still up in the air. The Catalan bid to host one of the most prestigious competitions in the world of golf, which pits teams from Europe and the United States against each other every two years, is pending your support. "It would be unforgivable and a serious irresponsibility on the part of the Government for Ryder to move to Madrid or elsewhere, when the organization's priority is for it to take place here", cried the president of Foment de Treball yesterday on behalf of twenty economic, social and sports organizations.
The Diputació de Girona, Barcelona Global, the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce, the College of Economists of Catalonia, Barcelona Turisme, the Círculo Ecuestre, the Diputació de Girona, the Restoration Guild, the Union of Sports Federations (UFEC) and the Consell Comarcal de la Selva are some of the twenty entities that have signed the manifesto Save the Ryder Cup! to force the Government to get involved in an event that, according to the promoters, has an economic impact of 1.3 billion euros and more than 2,500 hours of live television on 43 channels in 180 countries.
"We demand the support of the Generalitat so that it keeps its word and closes the candidacy to host one of the most important and followed sports competitions in the world", says the manifesto that was made public yesterday. The headquarters of the Ryder Cup 2031 will be the PGA Catalunya, in Caldes de Malavella (Selva). Its organization represents an investment of around 150 million euros over ten years, as explained by Ramon Nogué, president of the Catalan Golf Federation, which currently has the support of the Spanish Golf Federation. "In two or three months we will have to specify the space, if it cannot be in Caldes, another location will be proposed to the organizers of the Ryder Cup", warned Nogué.
To capture this competition and meet the requirements of the organizers – both access and reception or stands to accommodate the spectators (around 270,000 people) – the PGA Catalunya will have to build a third course, which is equivalent to expanding the facilities 170 hectares. "As planned in the Territorial Plan of Girona", maintains the director general of PGA Catalunya, David Plana. The urbanization and construction of 185 chalets associated with this third field would now not be included in the project, according to PGA Catalunya.
"Officially, we have no response from the Government, but if the Generalitat does not authorize this third course we will not be able to host the Ryder Cup", insisted Ramon Nogué. The promoters of the contest explain that for now, the State Government has committed to contribute 40 million euros, the private investment would amount to 30 million and, between town councils, the Diputació de Girona and the Government, another 60 million would be covered in a period of ten years. However, now the main hurdle for the organizers is whether to support the essential project to expand the facilities.
"In Catalonia, public-private collaboration has always been a success. It is part of our business culture, it is the winning formula for Barcelona 92 or the Copa de l'América", insisted Josep Sánchez Llibre. The president of the Unió de Federaciones Esportives de Catalunya (UFEC), Gerard Esteve, called for "commitment" on the part of the Catalan Executive: "Involvement in politics translates into budgets; we need to do it together and with commitment".
In the manifesto, the defenders of the Ryder Cup lament "the misinformation about the use of water" and insist that the water used has been 100% recycled since 1999 and that the PGA Catalunya was the first to have 'an own treatment plant that regenerates the water consumed within the resort.
