Calgary earns IOC praise for possible Games bid
With the Winter Olympics just days away in South Korea, officials with the International Olympic Committee gathering in Pyeongchang have already given Calgary and its potential to bid for the 2026 Games plenty of accolades.
But similar shout-outs were also given to three other cities that could end up being Calgary’s major rivals to host another Olympics, including Sapporo, Japan; Stockholm, Sweden; and Sion, Switzerland.
In its first official news conference with international media in Pyeongchang, IOC vice-president Juan Antonio Samaranch called Calgary’s potential to host those Games very good.
“It’s a good project, and it’s based very much on the legacy of something that’s already happened,” said Samaranch, who also chairs the IOC’s 2026 bid working group.
“We like the word legacy. They like it, too. Things are working there,” he added, confirming the IOC will have further meetings in Pyeongchang with Mayor Naheed Nenshi and the Calgary delegation.
In what the IOC is calling a new approach to more financially-responsible Olympic Games in the future, potential host cities will be favoured if they have held other major sporting events in the past and not too much new infrastructure is required. As well, those that are built need to indicate legacy potential and use for the future.
“We are looking for maximum flexibility, reduced costs, maximum use of existing facilities and sustainability.”
Still, Samaranch also praised Sapporo as another legacy city, hosting the Games as far back as 1972, saying “that is also based on the magical word legacy, although it’s an old legacy, 1972, but it still works.”
Stockholm was praised for being at the heart of an “extraordinary” country, with a bid team that had strong marketing skills.
And Sion, he added, has already received a funding commitment from the federal government to the tune of US$1 billion.
Being close to Lausanne, headquarters of the IOC, also bodes well for Sion’s communication, Samaranch added. But the bid will depend on results of a June referendumto see whether Switzerland goes ahead or not.
Samaranch added that other cities are also showing interest and will also meet with IOC officials this week, including U.S. delegations representing Denver and Salt Lake City.
But Coun. Ward Sutherland said he isn’t surprised Calgary is already a favourite among potential bid cities, adding that much like Switzerland, Calgary also won’t go ahead without a serious funding commitment from the province and the federal government.
“We’re very good for the branding of the IOC, for its reputation.
“Because we had so much success in 1988. The only facility that we have, that’s not being used, is the ski jump.
“They’ve already emphasized they like that, and that they’re done with building white elephants.”
Sutherland explained that whether Calgary hosts the 2026 Winter Olympics or not, the city will still have to spend up to $500 million to upgrade existing facilities such as the Olympic Oval to ensure they remain viable over the next 30 to 40 years.
But Coun. Sean Chu, who’s against hosting another Olympics, said he worries Calgary is one of the IOC’s favourites.
“If Calgary goes ahead with bidding for the Olympics, we will get it. But that’s not good.”
Chu worries about potential costs, including the Calgary Bid Exploration Committee’s estimate of a $4.6-billion price tag for the Games.
“Security costs alone could be as much as $600 million,” said Chu, adding he’s already unhappy with taxpayers having to foot the bill to send a delegation to Pyeongchang.
Nenshi departed for South Korea on Monday to head the Calgary group participating in an “observer program” for potential hosts of the Winter Olympics.
The mayor will be joined by a number of officials, including Canmore Mayor John Borrowman, Alberta deputy premier Sarah Hoffman, Alberta Tourism Minister Ricardo Miranda and a number of administrators from all levels of government.
The cost of the trip — shared between Calgary, Canmore and the provincial and federal governments — is about $135,000.
Calgary’s bid exploration committee will report back to council in March on the results of the observer program.