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Stockholm 2026 – The Games Come To All Of Sweden

In a bold move, organisers of the 2026 Olympic Games Candidacy for Stockholm have announced that certain events will be moved closer to Stockholm, while Ice Hockey will be played in 3 centres.

The skiing centre of Vemdalsskalet – between Åre and Stockholm – will now host the snowboarding disciplines as well as the freestyle events.  The closer proximity will enable city bound spectators to take in these hugely popular events as part of day trip – instead of the planned overnight excursion made necessary if hosted in Östersund.

Östersund however does not miss out – they will host cross country, biathlon, ski jumping and Nordic combined events.  Åre will host all alpine skiing and sliding events – bobsleigh, luge and skeleton.  

The southern cities of Malmö and Göteborg will host ice hockey preliminaries, while Stockholm gets the ice hockey finals, figure skating, curling and both speed skating disciplines.

The moving of the curling events back to Stockholm are seen as a positive, as the 2022 plans included a very controversial indoor curling rink being built in Åre.  Åre locals and politicians both lobbed against the permanent facility – and the public backlash was seen as one cause for the 2022 bid failure.  By staging curling in the smaller arena adjacent to the Globe complex, the need for any new venues is now negated.  

Ceremonies will be staged at the new Nordic Stadium in Stockholm completed in 2016.  This 76,000 capacity stadium with a removable roof will be officially renamed as the Olympic Stadium if the candidacy is successful.  Built on the site of the 1912 stadium, the new stadium has already proven a massive hit.  The recent covering of the Råsunda Stadium in central Stockholm has enabled it to be used as the speed skating venue for 2026.

Unlike any other bid, every venue is in place.  Only a temporary track for the sliding sports is needed in Åre, and temporary seating at some outdoor facilities.  Minor upgrades will be undertaken at the indoor venues, while the athlete’s villages – to be located in Stockholm and also between Åre and Östersund – will be a mixture of new low level constructions and university dorms.  As the new Stockholm Central campus of the Uppsala University will be completed in 2025, the Bid organisation will take advantage of the completed dormitories and utilise the 6,000 rooms as the main village.  A new 1,500 room resort is planned on the lakefront between Åre and Östersund – the alpine athletes will have run of this resort prior to the public opening in late 2026.  Ice Hockey competitors in Malmö and Göteborg will be billeted to local luxury hotels.

Public accommodation will not be a problem.  Throughout the Olympic region and in neighbouring Norway, easy access to close and budget accommodation is assured.  There is no need for any new hotel construction.

Transport plans include an extension to the Nordic Highway – including an expansion between Stockholm and Vemdalsskalet with dedicated Olympic lanes – and dedicated ferries to the Northern coast for easier access to Åre and Östersund.  No need is foreseen for an upgrade to the Stockholm International Airport.

More plans will be announced in the near future.

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