(ATR) The city of Calgary has finally received funding from the federal and provincial governments in Canada to pursue a bid for the 2026 Winter Olympics.
But the money comes with a major condition attached.
According to the CBC, all parties have agreed that Calgary must hold a public vote before a bid is finalized.
In return for involving residents of Calgary in the process, the city will receive CAN$10.5 million from the Ottawa federal government and CAN$10 million from the Alberta provincial government to create a bid corporation. Calgary city council last month approved its CAN$9.5 million share of the funding.
The bid corporation (BidCo) will determine whether a 2026 bid is financially viable for Calgary.
"We have a strong legacy of sport in this city and we know we can host a great Games, and now, alongside our partners in the Government of Alberta and the Government of Canada, we can continue to figure out if a 2026 Bid is the best interests of our citizens," Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi said in a statement.
Canadian Olympic Committee CEO Chris Overholt welcomed the decision to fund the BidCo, calling it "a very important step forward for the City of Calgary and for our collective efforts as we thoroughly assess the opportunity and impact of hosting an Olympic Games".
In a statement, Overholt added "We look forward to continuing our work with all stakeholders to advance the potential of Calgary 2026."
The Calgary city council is scheduled to discuss plans for public engagement on the bid process on April 10. The city council is expected to make a final decision in June on whether to bid for the 2026 Winter Games.
The council had previously been told that holding a plebiscite would cost close to CAN$2 million and could take six months to set up.
The funding for the Calgary BidCo comes as three more countries enter the race for hosting the 2026 Winter Games. Italy (Milan-Turin), Austria (Graz-Schladming) and Turkey (Erzurum) officially notified the IOC this week of their intent to join the dialogue phase of the process ahead of the March 31 deadline.
Calgary, along with Sapporo, Stockholm and Sion, Switzerland, have been a part of the process for months. Each of the four sent an Observer Team to the PyeongChang Winter Olympics last month.
Written by Gerard Farek
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