ECOC 2026 will be Trenčín. The pond expects hundreds of thousands of tourists – SME – SME.sk

TRENČÍN. The European Capital of Culture (ECOC) 2026 will be the regional city of Trenčín together with the Finnish city of Oulu.

The International Expert Commission evaluated the three Slovak finalists – Nitry, Žilina and Trenčín, the best project of the latter. Richard Rybníček perceives winning the title as a fulfillment of several years of dreams and a small miracle.

He believes that thanks to him, Trenčín will become a modern European city, to which especially young Slovaks who have left their homeland in the past will return. “So that they can find happiness, respect and humility here,” the mayor of Trenčín emphasized.

They have worked with thousands of people

The preparation of the winning project took the Trenčín organizational team about two years. According to the mayor, the ECOC project is another article in the mosaic of the city’s transformation, which started 11 years ago.

“The title gives us the opportunity to accelerate the planned change and prove that our city and the region have a huge potential to become modern, open, European. I am very proud of the team of people I trusted from the beginning, supported them. They are extremely skilful, talented, selfless, great, “remarked Rybníček.

Project manager Trenčín 2026 Lucia Dubačová stated that the whole process was very demanding, at the same time she highlighted strong rivals in the form of Nitra and Žilina.

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“All the effort was worth making Trenčín a completely different city. We won for every single person in Trenčín, as well as in the whole region. We worked with thousands of people, which was challenging but beautiful. “

In addition to the mayors of 17 cities in the Trenčín Region, the city of Zlín and the Zlín Region, the Alexander Dubček University of Trenčín, the city of Trenčianske Teplice and the Trenčín Self-Governing Region also expressed support for the city of Trenčín and the Trenčín 2026 organizational team. Its chairman Jaroslav Baška was among the first to congratulate.

“Since the announcement of the candidacy, we have managed to do a huge amount of work, but the most difficult one is just beginning. We were and still are a proud partner of the city of Trenčín on the whole path to winning the title, so we also declared cooperation in meeting the challenges that come with it. I am glad that the whole region has really come together for a good cause. With such broad support and amazing cooperation between local governments, it probably couldn’t have turned out otherwise, “said the Trenčín county.

They are counting on using the old railway bridge

The first step for Trenčians in the next year will be the establishment of the non-profit organization Creative Institute Trenčín, which will implement the entire project. They will then announce a competition for the director of the non-profit organization, as well as for the artistic director.

The team will continuously continue with projects, several of which started before December 10, 2021. These are, for example, the Trenčín si ty project or the Fiesta Bridge.

“This is a project that should turn the old railway bridge into a new center for contemporary culture, where local local artists, as well as artists from Slovakia, as well as international artists in various interdisciplinary performances and exhibitions, will be given space. We also highlighted this project in front of the jury, “said Lenka Kuricová, the project’s program manager.

Another of the main projects is “City remaging.” In it, they deal with visual smog and public space.

“Here we have confirmed fantastic names like Superflex, which is a Danish interdisciplinary art group, or Sound of Democracy, which is a project that we developed with the Pohoda festival. We will be looking forward to amazing names from European countries, but also from countries that may still have a problem with proper support of democratic values, “added Kuricová.

Project manager Lenka Dubačová also pointed out that events and projects will not be tied only to the year 2026.

“Implementation basically starts from the first day, the projects will go out gradually. Of course, the closer we get to 2026, the more events, exhibitions and events will come. The year 2026 will be very rich, all kinds of art and art genres will be represented in the program, “added Dubačová, adding that the space will also receive food, fashion or a current topic. climate crisis.

The mayor expects hundreds of thousands of tourists

Winning the prestigious title will not only bring various forms of culture, art and ideas to Trenčín, it also attracts many tourists to the regional city. According to Richard Rybníček, there will be record numbers of them.

“We expect that in a given year, but even then, not tens but hundreds of thousands of tourists will come here. And we must be prepared for that. Ultimately, I am convinced that from now on, we will be talking in a completely different way with the Ministry of Culture, with Europe, with the artists. Therefore, we will have to work hard to make the city more visible with other projects that we have prepared through the Hviezda Cultural and Creative Potential Center, “added the mayor of Trenčín.