Sad night for Yes Calgary 2026

Olympic-level excitement turned to crushing disappointment Tuesday night, as supporters of a Calgary Olympic bid absorbed the news they didn’t want to hear at a downtown gathering. About 56 per cent of Calgarians who voted in Tuesday’s plebiscite were against hosting the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Yes Calgary 2026 organizer Jason Ribeiro said the biggest challenge the Yes side faced throughout its campaign to bring the Games back to Alberta was “misinformation,” but noted other factors were also at play, such as “economic anxiety.” and a message that didn’t resonate with some older Calgarians who had already experienced the Games in 1988.

Scott Hutcheson, chair of the Calgary 2026 bid corporation, said, “It’s been interesting, it’s been a challenge, it’s been important to the community. It’s been on the front page of the news which tells us that our community is engaged. Nothing comes easily. This hasn’t come easily, this process,” Hutcheson said.

For the hundreds of supporters who gathered Tuesday at Vagabond, a bar across from the Stampede grounds, they were left wiping tears from their eyes by the end of the night, hugging each other in consolation.