Ski Chief Optimistic for 2026 Winter Olympic Bids

(ATR) Gian Franco Kasper says that no matter which of the three 2026 candidate cities emerge as Olympic host, it will be a good fit for winter athletes and the ski racing community.

"We had seven candidates at the beginning, we are now down to three, the last one was eliminated by the IOC in Buenos Aires," Kasper said, referring to Erzurum, Turkey, speaking at the FIS Forum Alpinum in Soelden, Austria. "I have my doubts whether or not this is correct because all three of the candidates have some problems.

"I really hope at the end we have some candidates left, but it is a difficult situation," Kasper said, briefly listing the various hurdles that each of the remaining candidates face.

"It’s not the best situation for the reputation of the winter games," he added, while informing the ski family that the election will now take place in Lausanne in May 2019.

Considering lack of experience staging international ski events by both PyeongChang 2018 and Beijing 2022 organizers, Kasper noted that it will a brighter situation for 2026. Candidate cities Calgary, Stockholm and Milan/Cortina d’Ampezzo and their mountain resorts all possess considerable experience hosting World Cup and world championship ski races.

Nick Fellows of Eurosport challenged Kasper, asking him who he would like to see win the 2026 Games and which candidate would be best for "our sport."

"We will not be in Asia for sure this time," Kasper said. "I think that all three candidates are very good – we can be very optimistic.

"Of course we don’t know if all will make it to the final dance."

Kasper noted how the Agenda 2020 reforms are granting extra flexibility allowing candidates to spread venues across different regions to reduce costs. However, he said, as a result there will be greater travel times for athletes, officials, coaches and media.

Kasper, who was elected president of FIS in May 1998 and has overseen five Winter Games, remains positive about the 2026 race.

"If they can stay in it until the election takes place, I think we will have three very worthy candidates for the WinterGames and we can be very optimistic for the future, no question."

Most Expensive Winter Games Ever

Kasper said that preparations for Beijing 2022 are on track, however the Olympics in China will be the most expensive Winter Games ever.

"Things are looking much better, we can guarantee you that it will not be a modest Games in China – they will be the biggest, strangest, nicest and the most expensive Winter Games that we’ve ever seen," Kasper said, being interviewed on stage at the Forum.

"They are doing an excellent job, they are learning very fast," he said of the Chinese organizers. "You will see the Chinese around almost every World Cup race this season."

Kasper said plans for shaping the downhill course in the Yanqing cluster are moving forward.

"We got the necessary permission and now they are preparing the terrain for the downhill."

He also noted that the Chinese sport federations have high expectations and are confident that they can develop competitive winter athletes in unfamiliar sports quickly.

"The only thing I’m worried about with the Chinese is themselves with their athletes because they expect to be number one in the medal ranking at the end, but that will be very hard."

FIS secretary general Sarah Lewis noted that the new aerials mixed event, one of five new ski/snowboard events on the Beijing 2022 program, will be a favorite for Chinese fans considering the country’s strong track record and wealth of talented athletes in the acrobatic freestyle skiing discipline.

Lewis noted the other new FIS events are the ski jumping mixed team event, snowboard cross mixed team and freestyle skiing big air for both genders.

World Alpine Championships in Sweden

The Swedish ski resort of Are – which will host its’ third FIS Alpine Ski World Championships, Feb. 5-17 – hopes to also welcome racers at the 2026 Olympics.

"We are on track again, so we hope to have the Olympics in 2026," said Are media and broadcasting director Karin Halvarsson, addressing press at the International Association of Ski Journalists (AIJS) General Assembly in Soelden.

Are, which is located just over 500 kilometers north of Stockholm, has previously hosted the FIS flagship event in 1954 and 2007. The northern Swedish resort is also an annual stop on the ladies World Cup circuit.

Halvorsson said that the cozy resort of 1,400 habitants is "exotic, unique, modern and exciting."

Written and reported by Brian Pinelli in Soelden