Who Owns Bansko? Finally an Answer and it's Quite a Surprise
Who Owns Bansko? Finally an Answer and it's Quite a Surprise
Published : 19-Dec-2018 12:05
The ownership of the Bulgarian ski resort of Bansko has long been the subject of conspiracy theorists.
The ski area has fought a long-time battle with environment campaigners over the past few decades who accused it of illegal expansion on to National Park and UNESCO World Heritage Site land.
The fact that the resort appeared to be owned by an offshore trust based in the British Virgin Islands with dark rumours speculating investors might include organised crime groups seemed grist to the mill of those arguing against the resort's further development plans.
Now however in an unexpected twist in the long-running saga the former World Cup and Olympic skier Marc Girardelli has revealed he owns the resort, according to reports from the country.
The Luxembourg-based skier (also reportedly an "honorary citizen" of Bansko) said in a television interview that he bought Ulen, the company that owns the ski lifts at Bansko, in 2016.
"The fund is very big and is active on three continents. But there were a lot of harmful rumours which created a negative attitude towards Bansko and forced the fund to sell it," Girardelli told the TV Interviewer.
He said he could not go in to further details for reasons of confidentiality but did say he felt the price he paid was, "good value."
He said the aim was to develop the best skiing area in eastern Europe with the latest expansion plans which Bulgarian media reports would hopefully ease queues of up to three hours at ski lifts as the existing lift network struggles to cope with the 150,000 skiers now visiting each winter thanks to Bansko's popularity.
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