(ATR) The campaign for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games is in its final hours.
The two bidders – Stockholm- Are and Milan-Cortina—are delivering their last pitches to the 90-plus members of the IOC, now meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Technical briefings from both cities have taken up the morning. The briefings are held in camera, with no press coverage.
Swedish Crown Princess Victoria said she was feeling "total excitement" as she entered the hall for the Stockholm presentation.
"I’m very much in the moment, so please let me be in the moment," she told a Swedish TV crew, demurring any more comment.
Giovanni Malago, IOC member, Italian NOC president and leader of the 2026 bid, was busy shaking hands and greeting IOC colleagues as they gathered Monday morning. Senior IOC member in Italy Franco Carraro tells Around the Rings the time is right for Milan.
"It should be good, especially for athletes and the Olympic Movement because at this moment Italy has 83 percent of the people supporting the Games, because as you know in Western Europe at this time is not so usual.
"This is a very good moment with a big majority of the Italian people supporting it," said Carraro, who will retire from the IOC this year at age 80.
While the technical briefing is meant to cover the nuts and bolts of staging the Games, the finalpresentations in the afternoon will try to plumb the emotional appeal of the candidates. Stockholm-Are will be followed by Milan Cortina; each is allowed 30 minutes.
The final presentations will be televised starting at 1400 Lausanne time. Coverage is available through the Olympic Channel as well as the IOC channels on YouTube and Periscope.
The host city announcement will be televised live by the Olympic Channel and the other IOC outlets beginning at 1800 Lausanne time.
The race is acknowledged to be close, with members saying they may wait until the final presentations before making their choice. And as a two-city race that more than likely will be settled in one round of voting, there is no speculative anxiety that comes with host city elections including three or more candidates.
But as close as this contest might be, there is conjecture that IOC President Thomas Bach might have the opportunity to cast a tie-breaking vote. That would be a first.
Depending upon how many of the 95 current IOC members are in the hall for the vote Monday afternoon, 40 to 45 votes will be needed for a simple majority. The three members from Italy and two from Sweden will not be allowed to take part.
Stockholm and Milan have assembled a team of Olympians to help sway the IOC voters, but the final word may come from government leaders of both sides. The Prime Ministers of Italy and Sweden are included in the final presentations. Their pledges of support could be the measure used by the IOC members in making their decision.
Reported in Lausanne by Ed Hula.
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