Calgary named 1 of 3 cities left on list of potential 2026 Olympic hosts

The Olympic dream lives on in Calgary.

The International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Executive Board released a list of potential host cities that it recommended as candidates on Thursday, and of the four cities left in the running, only three made it through.

See also

• Calgary has one less competitor for the 2026 Olympic bid
• Calgary Olympic bid plan includes 7 events to be held in Whistler
• Calgary City Council approves 2026 Olympic bid going forward to plebiscite

Calgary, Alberta found its way onto the list, along with Stockholm, Sweden, and a joint bid from Milan/Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.

Erzurum, Turkey was left off the list of recommended cities.

The recommendations come following a report from the Olympic Winter Games Working Group 2026, which assessed the feasibility of the four cities left in the running after Sapporo, Japan, Sion Switzerland, and Giaz, Austria pulled out of the race.

The IOC release stated that an emphasis was made on maximizing the use of already existing infrastructure, an aspect of the IOC’s New Norm reforms that were put into place to bring down the costs of holding the games.

As Calgary had hosted the Winter Olympics back in 1988 many of the Olympic infrastructure remains standing and usable, which aligns nicely with the New Norm policy.

Here’s what the Working Group report said of Calgary’s potential for hosting in 2026:

The city breathes the legacy of the 1988 Games and can make optimal use of existing venues for 2026. Calgary boasts valuable experience and expertise in hosting winter sports competitions and other major events. The city, the province and its people have a deep love and affinity for winter sports. In dialogue and partnership with the IOC, Calgary has developed a Games concept and vision that fit the new era of Olympic Agenda 2020/New Norm and meet the city’s long-term goals.

Of course, Calgary’s bid will still need to survive past a city-wide plebiscite on November 13, which will give Calgarians the chance to either move the bid forward or shorten the list of potential host cities down even further.