It says a lot about the importance of the America's Cup that the latest debate on this competition was held this Thursday in the field of talent promotion (BNEW Talent) and within the framework of the Barcelona New Economy Week (BNEW), which took place this week at the DFactory Barcelona complex, promoted by the Barcelona Free Zone Consortium.
This explains very well what impact this sporting event will have on Barcelona as a whole when the city hosts it in 2024. But the effort of all public administrations and institutions, together with the entity that has pursued this goal for the Catalan capital, Barcelona Global, is not only focused on "making the 37th edition of the America's Cup the best in its history," but must turn it into "a very important transformative lever, in terms of sustainability and the promotion of grassroots sports". And, even more, "we have to develop a whole process of building the event for future editions," so that the advances that are incorporated and on which work is already underway are of "such content and importance that they will always be rooted in this competition."
This was expressed this Thursday by Ignasi Armengol, director of the FBCN —formerly Barcelona Oceanic Navigation Foundation (FNOB)—, the entity in which the organizers of the 2024 championship, Emirates Team New Zealand, the winning team of the last regatta, have placed their trust so that everything goes smoothly.
Also participating in the debate held within the framework of BNEW Talent were Damià Calvet, president of the Port of Barcelona; Daniel Puig, vice president of Barcelona Global; and Maria Eugenia Gay, Government delegate in Catalonia; and Pere Navarro, a great defender of public-private collaboration as he has demonstrated with his strategy as State delegate in the Consorci de la Zona Franca, acted as moderator.
In the almost hour of sharing their reflections on the opportunity that the America's Cup represents for the city, all the speakers agreed that it would not have been possible to achieve it without the enthusiasm and consensus of all parties involved.
In the same vein as Ignasi Armengol, the rest of the guests highlighted that in the background of this sporting event there are other factors that must be promoted: innovation, in terms of navigation, but also new energies and port infrastructures; sustainability; and synergies in the nautical industry and on the path towards the blue economy, as stated by the president of the Port of Barcelona, Damià Calvet.
He cited as an example that the auxiliary vessels of the teams that will participate in the regattas will move with green hydrogen, for the first time in the history of this competition. In addition to the improvements that the port will also make: "the port area is ready to host and make in 2024 the best America's Cup in history." In fact, recently, the port has put into service a new radar system for the surveillance and control of maritime traffic with the aim of increasing the safety of operations through the instant and precise monitoring of vessel movements outside and inside the enclave.
"The America's Cup will revert to the industry and economy of Barcelona and the country," he added, highlighting that there is an ecosystem linked to nautical activities ranging from industry, to maintenance shipyards and a wide range of companies related to the Nautical Cluster.
The head of port activity also mentioned the more social aspect and promotion of Barcelona, "because this nautical championship is the third in the world with the most audience behind the Summer Olympic Games and the World Cup, which is why it will consolidate the city's image internationally."
The Government delegate in Catalonia, Maria Eugenia Gay, also referred to these benefits, for whom Barcelona and its citizens have shown "what kind of leadership they can exercise in key moments of history and, therefore, the America's Cup will be a new opportunity and a lever for growth from which Barcelonans can benefit while feeling an important part of the project."