IOC announces list of interested countries for 2026 Winter Games
The Olympic Oval is one facility that would likely be reused if Calgary makes a bid for 2026 Winter Olympics.
Reid Fiest / Global NewsThe International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced the list of countries interested in hosting the 2026 Winter Olympics — and Calgary is on that list.
“I warmly welcome the NOCs’ [National Olympic Committees] and cities’ interest in hosting the Olympic Winter Games,” said IOC president Thomas Bach in a news release Tuesday. “The IOC has turned the page with regard to Olympic candidatures. Our goal is not just to have a record number of candidates, but ultimately it is to select the best city to stage the best Olympic Winter Games for the best athletes of the world.”
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The six other cities that have expressed an official interest in hosting the 2026 games include:
- Graz, Austria
- Cortina d’Ampezzo/Milan/Turin, Italy
- Sapporo, Japan
- Stockholm, Sweden
- Sion, Switzerland
- Erzurum, Turkey
The IOC said a dialogue stage will begin next, “in which the IOC provides NOCs with greater support, technical advice, communications assistance and materials to develop the best possible candidature.”
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The IOC’s announcement coincides with the release of an exclusive Global News/Ipsos poll which suggests that a majority of Calgarians would ultimately support a bid for the 2026 Games.
The host city for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games will be announced by the IOC in September 2019.