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Stockholm/Åre 2026


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Sweden's new sports minister Amanda Lind (Green) had this to say about 2026 when asked by Radiosporten today:

”Hedrande och spännande att Sverige är med i slutspurten, och väldigt viktigt att SOK fokuserat på hållbarhet."

"Honourable and exciting that Sweden is in the final sprint, and very important that SOK [the Swedish Olympic Committee] focuses on sustainability."

The government has not taken an official position yet. My impression is that they are leaning in favour, particularly as City of Stockholm is no longer opposing the Games (though they neither want to pay for nor help organise the event).  If I had to guess I would say that they are launching soon, with the necessary security guarantee (which is why we've not seen the bid book yet).

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More updates today courtesy of Swedish Television. First this report from an interview with Richard Brisius, head of the Stockholm/Åre bid committee:

Quote

Olympic campaign: "It is positive with a new government"

published today 12.06

The campaign for the Winter Olympics in Stockholm in 2026 only looks positive with getting a new minister who handles sports issues. 

- Now we have a new government, it is stable. But there is no panic with the government's so-called security guarantee for winter Olympics 2026, says campaign leader Richard Brisius to SVT Sport.

 

Now that Sweden has a new government, and a Minister of Culture and Democracy with responsibility for sports issues, the political part of the Olympic campaign must continue to roll. During the autumn, Stockholm city politicians have proved to be positive, while the necessary state guarantee on security during the games can now come about when there is a stable government.

 

- The work on winter Olympics and paralympics in Stockholm 2026 continues to progress. Now we have a government in place and it feels stable. It is a collaborative project and we have received all of us, ”says Richard Brisius, CEO and campaign leader for SOK's Olympic company.

 

Stockholm received suspension from the IOC by submitting in the Swedish Government's security guarantee. When does it have to come for the IOC to be satisfied?

 

- There is no direct time limit for this. The IOC understood that we could not push this out when we had no government. But of course we should contact the new sports minister when it is the right time, not exactly right now. Because there is no panic. The goal for us is the end of June, when the actual Olympic vote takes place. Then everything should be clear.

 

Do you have any opinion in the Olympic campaign that sports issues may be hidden a little during the Culture Committee?

 

- It's not my thing to answer. But if you see the Olympics historically, culture has also been included in the Olympics. I mean that sports and culture are interconnected, and during the London Olympics there were thousands of cultural events organized within the Olympics.

 

What do you know about the new minister, Amanda Lind?

 

- I look forward to seeing her. Work on the Olympics continues.

Olympic campaign: "It is positive with a new government"

published today 12.06

The campaign for the Winter Olympics in Stockholm in 2026 only looks positive with getting a new minister who handles sports issues. 
- Now we have a new government, it is stable. But there is no panic with the government's so-called security guarantee for winter Olympics 2026, says campaign leader Richard Brisius to SVT Sport.

Now that Sweden has a new government, and a Minister of Culture and Democracy with responsibility for sports issues, the political part of the Olympic campaign must continue to roll. During the autumn, Stockholm city politicians have proved to be positive, while the necessary state guarantee on security during the games can now come about when there is a stable government.

- The work on winter Olympics and paralympics in Stockholm 2026 continues to progress. Now we have a government in place and it feels stable. It is a collaborative project and we have received all of us, ”says Richard Brisius, CEO and campaign leader for SOK's Olympic company.

Stockholm received suspension from the IOC by submitting in the Swedish Government's security guarantee. When does it have to come for the IOC to be satisfied?

- There is no direct time limit for this. The IOC understood that we could not push this out when we had no government. But of course we should contact the new sports minister when it is the right time, not exactly right now. Because there is no panic. The goal for us is the end of June, when the actual Olympic vote takes place. Then everything should be clear.

Do you have any opinion in the Olympic campaign that sports issues may be hidden a little during the Culture Committee?

- It's not my thing to answer. But if you see the Olympics historically, culture has also been included in the Olympics. I mean that sports and culture are interconnected, and during the London Olympics there were thousands of cultural events organized within the Olympics.

What do you know about the new minister, Amanda Lind?

- I look forward to seeing her. Work on the OS continues.

SVT also caught up with the new Swedish sports minister Amanda Lind on the 2026 bid:

 

Quote

 

New sports minister: Government is returning to the Olympic question

published today 16.13

According to information from SVT Sport, there has long been support for a security guarantee for the Olympic Games 2026 from a political level at the highest level. 
But formally, the new government will now deal with the issue. 
- The government will come back with a message on this issue, but I know that there is careful work with the wise thinking about how this could be done, says new sports minister Amanda Lind (Green) to SVT Sport.

The security guarantee would have been completed earlier in January, but due to the political situation, Sweden has been granted an exemption from the International Olympic Committee.

New sports minister Amanda Lind does not currently want to answer whether there is an agreement on security guarantee.

- The government may return with that message, but of course it is honorable and fun that Sweden is still in the final question.

According to SVT's information, is there already an agreement on the security guarantee for the OS?

- The government may return with a message on this issue.

The question must be a high priority?

- Sweden is one of the final candidates so we will come back with a message. It is fun that Sweden has been recognized as a sports nation and I am also looking forward to several major sporting events now this winter, in Östersund and Åre, which I will follow.

When will the government return to the question?

- I have nothing to say about that, says Amanda Lind.

 

Translations by Google.

I get the sense that the campaign is slowly changing opinion and they will get there. I don't know what they are doing behind the scenes, though, because SOK have been very quiet apart from this interview...

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1 hour ago, yoshi said:

I think they might even get there. Their biggest challenge was always gonna be getting to the vote - surely the IOC can’t turn Sweden down yet again, especially as their bid embodies what they’re supposed to be looking for now. 

I think the Swedes have realised that if they bid they are very likely to win. Milan-Cortina is a good bid but the IOC probably does not want to go back to Italy so soon after Torino; the three unsuccessful Östersund bids and the 2004 Stockholm summer Olympic bid; and your point about the Agenda 2020/New Norm stuff which this exemplifies.

 

The SOK also appears to be playing the domestic politics well, ending the City Council's opposition to the bid and not rushing to be first in with the government. I just wonder if this will come together before the evaluation commission visit in March or after.

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Two updates today. First on is Peter Reinbo of the Swedish Olympic Committee, interviewed by Radiosporten:

 

Quote

So much does is the Olympics for the State: "a few hundred million is relevant"

Posted at 18:03 11.50

When Stefan Löfvens new Government presented Sweden got a new sports minister. Now it's Amanda Lind (Green Party) to take care of sports issues. In tonight's Sportextra in P4, she is a guest in the Studio (broadcast starting 19.00).

One of the first questions that Amanda Lind and the Government will have to tackle is the 2026 Winter Olympics. The Swedish Olympic Committee (SOK) has applied to host the Olympics and the Swedish candidature is the only competitor to Italy's bid. But the Government must give its approval and support.

Now points to a possible amount SOK, the State must stand for. And also the date that the issue must be resolved.

"We need a written recommendation from the Government that they support the project and are willing to take responsibility for order and security matters on the streets, that it is prepared to receive the world, and now we're talking customs and migration, says Peter Reinebo, Operations Manager at SOK to Radiosporten.

The Ministers are most relevant to discuss with?

– Of course, interior, trade, Foreign Affairs, sports and the Prime Minister.

On the 23rd of June, presented the Olympic values for 2026 Winter Olympics. The two remaining candidates are Stockholm/Åre and Milan/Cortina.

When you have the go-ahead from the Government?

– As early as possible, by the 12th of April, we will come in with an addition (to the IOC) of bid files "(the application), says Peter Reinebo.

Japan's Government has just released the budgeted cost for the security guarantee during the Tokyo Olympics in 2020. Where the deal is up to €1.8 billion for the security guarantee. How comparable are the sums of what it takes in Sweden?

"It's about one-third of the maximum amount that Tokyo displays here. A few hundred million is relevant, a few billions is not relevant, says Peter Reinebo.

Second the Swedish Sports Minister Amanda Lind was interviewed by Radiosporten today, as mentioned above:

 

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Sports Minister if OS 2026: "there is a very wise thought from SOK"

Posted at 18:03 20.14

Sports minister Amanda Lind (MP) visited Sportextra on Wednesday to discuss a possible Winter Olympics 2026 in Sweden. She stressed that the Government still needs to understand what security guarantees mean for the Swedish State – but like what the Swedish Olympic Committee (SOK) made so far.

SOK has a dispensation by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to delay the State security guarantee and the fight with the Italian Milan 2026 to host Olympics going on.

"I want to say that I think it is great fun to Sweden and SOK is in the game here and is in the final battle in the final round of this application. And I think there is a very wise remember from SOK in to do this in a sustainable way, "said Lind to Sportextra and continued:

– The Olympic Games have often been marked by problems with building plants or human rights. Sweden would have an opportunity to show something else. And it's the SOK sketching, that sustainability is very high.

She also explains that she herself plays an important role before the Government finally lands in a joint decision. But when the decision is to be expected, is still unclear.

– As soon as possible. We must ensure that we have all the supporting documents needed and I know that SOK work on with different kind of clarifications of their application. Right now we are waiting for an enhanced basis and will also take part of it and assess it. Then we need to arrive at a position so that the timetable is kept.

Lind received questions from listeners and received, among other things, the question of whether it is "appropriate" that taxpayers should pay "a few hundred million" on the security guarantee required.

"I think the Olympic Games is positive and it is positive that Sweden wants to see if it is possible to arrange this in a more sustainable way. We should not build new "swagger" construction or new plants. Since costs are always a risk in major sporting events. That is what we need to assess, if we can ensure safety in a good way.

Translations courtesy of Microsoft.

This is looking more and more likely by the day...

 
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I think they can get there. And if they do, we may just be seeing the salvation of the Winter Olympics - assuming of course that the IOC learns the lessons. I particularly hope the Latvian aspect works, since suitable mountain ranges & existing venues sometimes don’t respect national borders, a proof of concept could really open it up to Central Europe especially. 

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1 hour ago, StefanMUC said:

May I just throw the word “referendum” in here?

Public opinion was lukewarm at best so far. Even if they get to the IOC vote & win, there’s still a “Denver risk”, no?

I think this is the reason it's going so slowly--to get the politics right. I don't get the sense of a Denver risk; the Swedes will keep their ccommitment and the challenge is getting them to make the commitment at all.

In this respect also think it's not a coincidence that a Green Party minister is leading this effort as the Greens notionally lean against the Games (if the political support table on page 130 of the bid book is to be believed). The centre of Swedish politics, left and right, support the Games, with the far left against and the far right neutral. If they can forge a consensus--and the SOK have already got Stockholm City Council to move from opposition to neutral--I can imagine they can work to keep the public on side.

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Looking really good with the Stockholm 2026 plan but I would have all 4 ceremonies at Friends Arena let's keep it all together in one venue the media ceremonies could be a street party. 

In other news Italy is now in a recession which could kill off the Milan - Cortina Italy 2026 bid.

  https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-01-31/italy-falls-into-recession-as-output-shrank-more-than-forecast

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15 hours ago, StefanMUC said:

May I just throw the word “referendum” in here?

Public opinion was lukewarm at best so far. Even if they get to the IOC vote & win, there’s still a “Denver risk”, no?

Throwing around that word and referencing Denver don't necessarily carry meaning unless you're applying it to a specific situation.  A referendum has to ask a targeted question.  It can't just be "do you want the Olympics or not."  Even with Calgary, they kept saying that was going to be non-binding.

The situation in Denver occurred over what was a very trivial amount of funding;.  It was an almost symbolic way of saying no to the Olympics.  I don't know there's necessarily that risk here, especially if Stockholm wins the vote.  Because how is that going to look for them to reject the Olympics.  For what?  What's their reasoning after they'll have let that bid get to a vote in the first place.

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7 hours ago, Quaker2001 said:

Throwing around that word and referencing Denver don't necessarily carry meaning unless you're applying it to a specific situation.  A referendum has to ask a targeted question.  It can't just be "do you want the Olympics or not."  Even with Calgary, they kept saying that was going to be non-binding.

The situation in Denver occurred over what was a very trivial amount of funding;.  It was an almost symbolic way of saying no to the Olympics.  I don't know there's necessarily that risk here, especially if Stockholm wins the vote.  Because how is that going to look for them to reject the Olympics.  For what?  What's their reasoning after they'll have let that bid get to a vote in the first place.

With “Denver risk” I meant giving the Games to a city where the public afterwards rejects them. Budget allocation or not - the IOC cannot afford a host where a majority of the people would feel it’s imposed on them against their will.

If there is a referendum at some point, I wouldn’t count my chicken just yet.

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If we get another Denver case with Stockholm they get the games then the public votes against the games, Sochi Russia could be like Innsbruck in 1976 they hosted the games in 1964 and hosted the games 12 years later as the back up host It will be interesting if history repeat's itself in Stockholm.

2026 is a mess at this point why risk it with Sweden Stockholm might end up with going to Sochi Russia again. 

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22 minutes ago, mountainboarder_530@yahoo. said:

Salt Lake City will unquestionably be the fallback if sweden and/or italy go offline, certainly not Sochi.  Sochi will have to draw up plans for 2038-ish timeframe.  

It will be interesting if Salt Lake City host 2026 Winter Games and Shanghai host the 2032 Summer Games it will be like China handing over the flag to America with China picking it up again in LA 2028. 

Salt Lake City USA 2026 - Almaty Kazakhstan 2030

After Beijing China 2022 I still see Europe still not warm up to hosting the Winter Games and might have to wait for the Salt Lake City USA 2026 and Paris France 2024 for them to embrace the games again so 2030 might be Sapporo Japan vs Almaty Kazakhstan.

Shanghai China 2032 

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14 hours ago, Olympianfan said:

If we get another Denver case with Stockholm they get the games then the public votes against the games, Sochi Russia could be like Innsbruck in 1976 they hosted the games in 1964 and hosted the games 12 years later as the back up host It will be interesting if history repeat's itself in Stockholm.

2026 is a mess at this point why risk it with Sweden Stockholm might end up with going to Sochi Russia again. 

12 hours ago, Olympianfan said:

It will be interesting if Salt Lake City host 2026 Winter Games and Shanghai host the 2032 Summer Games it will be like China handing over the flag to America with China picking it up again in LA 2028. 

Salt Lake City USA 2026 - Almaty Kazakhstan 2030

After Beijing China 2022 I still see Europe still not warm up to hosting the Winter Games and might have to wait for the Salt Lake City USA 2026 and Paris France 2024 for them to embrace the games again so 2030 might be Sapporo Japan vs Almaty Kazakhstan.

Shanghai China 2032 

My goodness, could you be any more scatter-brained?

Like mountainboarder said, Salt Lake is the only fallback.  Not Sochi.  Certainly not Almaty.  If SLC isn't the savior for 2026, then they'll look at other options.  But we are far away from that being a consideration.

Why risk it with Stockholm?  To that I say.. why not risk it with Stockholm?  Yes, it could end ugly.  What if it doesn't end ugly though?  Someone else mentions Denver and you have this idea planted in your head (good job of inception there).  Right now, it's Stockholm and Milan/Cortina.  While those 2 are still in the running, it's not necessarily a mess.  And if the IOC doesn't warm up to Europe, how is Europe supposed to warm up to hosting?

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Another story on the Stockholm 2026 campaign. (Translation courtesy of Microsoft).

 

Quote

 

"Climate-neutral World Championships speaks for the Olympics in Sweden 2026"

Published yesterday 14.28

Tomorrow opens the Alpine World Championships in Åre which are the first carbon-neutral World Championships.

It gives Sweden an advantage in the battle for the Winter Olympics 2026, says Karin Mattsson.

"If we can do this now on 20-25% of an Olympics, it is clear that if seven years could we make the world's first climate-neutral OS, says Ski Federation President Karin Mattsson to SVT Sport.

Both the Alpine World Championships in Åre and Biathlon World Championships in Östersund make Sweden a better candidate city for the Olympics in 2026.

– In February and March, we can say that we practice at 20-25 percent of a Winter Olympics with both Alpine World Championships and the Biathlon World Championships" said Swedish Ski Federation President Karin Mattsson to SVT Sport.

The Championships in Åre is the first carbon-neutral championships, a concept that Sweden should continue working on in order to increase the chances of getting the Winter Olympics 2026.

"If we can do this now on 20-25% of an Olympics, it is clear that if seven years we could make the world's first climate-neutral Olympics. It would be wonderful and it would force the next operator to also make it even better. It would be a great opportunity to influence in the right direction" said Mattsson.

Notice from the Government in our

Mattsson, who previously was Chairman of the Swedish Sports Confederation, believes Sweden is better than the other candidate Milan/Cortina.

"Sweden is supposed to be that medal richest country that never organized, it's our turn. Then you should not think that it will be a walk victory but I think we have great opportunities."

"It is the Swedish Olympic Committee, SOK, who stands behind the Olympic application and now it is up to the Government to review the external security and then give their views on the matter."

"The Government has just taken office as it is the Government and the State must take responsibility for the external security at all major events. Now we will look at the ground, landing in a conclusion, and then come back with a response as soon as we can during the spring" said the Minister of culture and sport Amanda Lind.

 

As an aside, the IOC Evaluation Commission for 2026 is due to visit Stockholm from March 12-16, which is during the Biathlon World Championships in Östersund (March 7-17). Östersund's ski stadium is not a proposed venue for 2026, but could be an example of Swedish event organisation should they pay a visit to it. (The Evaluation Commission is not going to Milan-Cortina until April 2-6 which is not during any scheduled winter World Cup events, as far as I can see.)

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With the Alpine Skiing World Championships in Åre this week there are a lot of Olympic stories, not all positive, with the Italians commenting on luggage delays for their athletes, the comments by Gian-Franco Kasper (FIS president) on dictatorships and a new report warns that Stockholm's public transport system may not be able to handle Olympic visitors at peak hours. In all of this the has been some movement on the part of Stockholm City Council, with their sports leader saying that they support the Olympics and Paralympics provided that there are no financial guarantees from the city:

Quote

When it comes to an Olympics / Paralympics in Stockholm in 2026, the majority have said that the facilities will be available for any event.
"We welcome major events, but the City of Stockholm will not host or provide any financial guarantees. We invest for the sports movement and association life in the first place."
"But we welcome an Olympic and Paralympics. It is positive for sports in Stockholm and the hospitality industry. Now it is up to the IOC and SOK and show that it is possible to arrange the event without a city having to go in with financial guarantees."

(Translation by Google.)

Slowly this moves forward...

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  • 4 weeks later...
On 2/3/2019 at 12:20 AM, Olympianfan said:

It will be interesting if Salt Lake City host 2026 Winter Games and Shanghai host the 2032 Summer Games it will be like China handing over the flag to America with China picking it up again in LA 2028. 

Salt Lake City USA 2026 - Almaty Kazakhstan 2030

After Beijing China 2022 I still see Europe still not warm up to hosting the Winter Games and might have to wait for the Salt Lake City USA 2026 and Paris France 2024 for them to embrace the games again so 2030 might be Sapporo Japan vs Almaty Kazakhstan.

Shanghai China 2032 

If Paris 2024 will be super-successful, I think the boosters of Annecy might want to have a go at Winter 2034 -- hence one more latent Euro host.  

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9 hours ago, baron-pierreIV said:

If Paris 2024 will be super-successful, I think the boosters of Annecy might want to have a go at Winter 2034 -- hence one more latent Euro host.  

Oh gawd. Another Tulsa bombardment of Annecy this & Annecy that. :unsure:

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8 hours ago, RuFF said:

I think everyone already knows the 2026 edition of the Winter Games are going to Stockholm- Are. 

Paris 2024

Stockholm-Are 2026

Los Angeles 2028

Salt Lake City - or, more likely, another place 2030

No.. "everyone" does not know that.  Pretty sure some folks in Stockholm don't know it either.  It's far from a foregone conclusion Stockholm will be the winner.  All things being equal, yes that's clearly where the IOC would like to go for 2026.  Doesn't always work out that way, as the IOC learned the hard way for 2022 (let's not forget that they were only a handful of votes from sending the Olympics to Kazakhstan).  Let's see if the Stockholm bid makes it to the finish line in June.  With them, never safe to assume that's a guarantee.

Quote

Speaking of which I think a 2026/2030 double was the ticket for SLC that seems to have passed. A line up of Tokyo, Beijing, Paris, Stockholm-Are, Los Angeles is sure to peak the interest of potential bidders for 2030. That string will likely inspire a lot of confidence in the health of the game and will probably attract more potential host cities. 

I agree on that last point, but I'll withhold comment and let some other poster weigh in on that one if he pleases.

That does look like an impressive lineup, but does it really though?  Tokyo has a corruption scandal on their hands, so we'll have to see how that plays out.  Beijing only got the Olympics because of other cities dropping out and given the insanely over-the-top costs from 2008, I'm not so sure a Winter Olympics with a big budget will help the cause.  And let's see what happens with Paris before we start referring to them as an inspiration.  The Winter side of things is still a mess though.  Stockholm staying in the race would be huge for the IOC and allow them at least a couple more years to get their act together.  Doesn't necessarily mean that there will be a flood of applicants as a result, especially beyond countries that have already hinted they're looking at 2030.  And whether you want to buy into it or not, you can be sure that the USOC and Salt Lake will be involved and will probably be one of the favorites.

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  • 2 weeks later...

The line between "prediction" and "personal preference" has been so blurred with this man, it's tough to tell which is which.  Why are we supposed to put any stock into the guy who won't stop reminding everyone how he was the first to suggest a double and still feels an incessant need to remind us how he suggested a different order?

As usual, he brings up a lot of good points.  Yes, Stockholm is the best case scenario for the IOC.  Or it may not be if the city and the country don't get behind it.  And then with Salt Lake.. yea, 2034 would make sense in a lot of ways.  But what happens with Sapporo if there is corruption linked to Tokyo's bid and suddenly Sapporo doesn't look so good?  Thank you for parroting his line about stability.  Let's see if the world is ready for another Asian Winter Olympics after we've just had 2 in a row.  Let's see if the world wants to come back to Japan so soon?

AA may wind up being right.  But he wasn't the last time.  Maybe his is not the opinion we should be looking for.

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