Nenshi: Leave emotion out

CALGARY In the afterglow of Team Canada’s impressive hardware haul at the Pyeongchang Olympics, Calgary’s mayor says hard evidence and not warm, fuzzy emotions should drive the debate over whether to vie for the 2026 Winter Games.

“Obviously people are very excited about the Olympics right now, particularly after the tremendous showing of Team Canada in Pyeongchang,” Naheed Nenshi said Monday.

“It’s actually one of the reasons why I didn’t want to do a ton of public engagement during the Olympics, because I’d like cooler heads to prevail as we continue to have this discussion.”

Nenshi went on a fact-finding trip to South Korea earlier this month along with other municipal and provincial politicians.

Canada brought home a record 29 medals — 11 gold, eight silver and 10 bronze — in Pyeongchang. Its next-best medal count was during the 2010 Games in Vancouver and Whistler, B.C., when it won 26.

Nenshi said it would be great to have some time for the enthusiasm to cool down, but decisions need to be made soon.

Nenshi said city council has until late spring to make a firm call on whether or not it’s serious about a bid.

“By the end of June, we really should have an idea of what the finances look like and what the commitment of the federal and provincial governments would be.”

The province is still chewing on the issue, Alberta Premier Rachel Notely told reporters in Edmonton.

“There are a lot of pros and cons to it, and we have to look at value for dollars and things like that,” she said.

The Calgary Bid Exploration Committee has pegged the cost of holding the Games at $4.6 billion, with revenues covering about half that.