IOC returns to Calgary to update status of Olympic bid

IOC comes back to Calgary Olympic Games Executive Director Christophe Dubi will meet with Calgary 2026 on Wednesday to update the status of Calgary's bid.

Representatives from the International Olympic Committee will be in the city on Wednesday to answer questions from Calgarians about a potential bid for the games in 2026.

This is the second time that the IOC has visited the city since Calgary indicated it might be interested in submitting a bid for the 2026 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

Olympic Games Executive Director, Christophe Dubi, and Hannah Burns, the head of promotion for Olympic candidatures, were invited by BidCo to come back to Calgary to provide an update on the status of the bid.

BidCo says it wants to give Calgarians a chance to have their questions answered before the November 13th plebiscite.

Funding for the games remains a big stumbling block for some citizens and city councillors and the topic was addressed once again at City Hall on Tuesday.

The total cost of the games is pegged at $5.23 billion and $3 billion of that would be public money from the three levels of government.

The chair of the Olympic Winter Games Assessment Committee says the announcement from Ottawa on federal funding is imminent.

If Calgary wins the bid the province will kick in $700 million, the feds are expected to come up with $1.5 billion and the city would be on the hook to cover the remaining $800 million.

Alberta Premier Rachel Notley says if there is a funding shortfall perhaps the IOC should take a closer look at what it can contribute.

“If there is a gap between what needs to be put forward and what is out there, perhaps maybe the IOC ought to be looking at what they can put in.  You know, there’s not a whole swack of people out there begging for the Olympics, so maybe we should be a price giver, not a price taker on this one," said Notley.

A public engagement campaign is underway but Erin Waite from No Calgary Olympics says the process is being rushed.

“It’s another process that shows the pressure of being rushed. It’s not engagement when it’s one way so the information that’s being collected at the open houses, people can respond, there’s no time left to get any answers back to people so when I’ve been at open houses, I’ve heard a lot of questions, I’ve seen a lot of puzzled looks and there’s no one there who answers those questions,” she said.

The city is hosting another open house on Tuesday evening at the Genesis Centre from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m.

The IOC members will be joined by Calgary 2026 CEO, Mary Moran, and some of Canada’s Olympic athletes at a news conference at Canada Olympic Park at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday.

For more information on public engagement for the 2026 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, click HERE.

For more on Calgary’s potential bid for the 2026 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, click HERE.