Stockholm 2026 Recruits Athlete Ambassadors

(ATR) Sweden recruits some of the country’s most celebrated athletes to support its bid to bring the 2026 Olympics and Paralympics to Stockholm.

The first batch of athlete ambassadors was unveiled this week. All 21 of them are either Olympians or Paralympians and have combined for more than 60 Olympic medals from a wide range of different sports.

Swedish cross country skier Charlotte Kalla, who has won three Olympic gold medals among her total of nine, says she is "really excited" about her country’s 2026 bid though at age 31 she will likely not be part of the team should Stockholm win the hosting rights.

Biathlon star Sebastian Samuelsson, 21, is one athlete who has a strong chance of competing at the games in 2026. He won two medals in his debut Olympic Games earlier this year in PyeongChang.

"It would be inspiring to stand up in the most important competition of my career, and do it in Sweden," he said in a statement. "The Olympic Games are the biggest thing you can do as an athlete, and to do it in your own country, very few have the chance to do that."

Stockholm and the joint Italian bid from Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo are the only remaining candidates still in the running. Until very recently, both bids were having trouble in securing full government support.

The Italian project, however, appears in much better shape after the IOC announced on November 8 that the current financial support from the two regional governments involved with the bid was enough to move forward without any help from the federal government.

A week later the Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini said the federal government would "make the final push" to pay any remaining costs not already covered by other means. The announcement signaled an about face for the Rome government from the month before.

As for Stockholm, the Swedish elections in September have thrown a wrench into the process. Stockholm 2026 is currently working to convince the city’s new center-right government to change its mind and support the bid.

Last week, IOC Executive Director Christophe Dubi told reporters in Sweden that there are "no particular worries" about securing government support for the Stockholm bid.

Neither the Swedish nor Italian bids face a public vote, which has been the death knell for four potential 2026 bids, the most recent in Calgary last week.

The Stockholm 2026 bid team emphasizes that 90 percent of the facilities are already in place. Stockholm will be home for most of them, but the bid also includes winter venues in Åre, Falun, and the Latvian city of Sigulda, where the sliding events would be held.

"I only see the positives of holding an Olympic Games in Stockholm," Samuelsson says. "The effects of this as a public health project are invaluable – to inspire people to move out and make young people try out many different sports."

Written by Gerard Farek

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