Sweden has received Stockholm's city authorities' blessing to put forward a bid to host the 2030 Winter Olympics - which the country has never hosted.
ADVERTISEMENTStockholm has become the latest European city ready to host the 2030 Winter Olympic Games, after the city council expressed its support for Sweden's bid: the Swedish capital is expected to be the main venue for competitions.
“The city council supports the initiative for a Swedish candidacy for the 2030 Olympic and Paralympic Games,” the Swedish capital’s authority said in a statement.
The decision puts the Nordic nation one step closer to actually becoming a candidate to host the 2030 Olympics, which follow on from Milan-Cortina in Italy in 2026.
The Swedish government and Swedish Olympic Committee already gave their green light to the venture, with the government saying it was ready to "examine the conditions for providing the state guarantees required for a candidacy.”
The mayor of Stockholm, Karin Wanngård, said that hosting the games in the Swedish capital would guarantee that the world-famous event “can be carried out in a sustainable way on a climatic, economic and social level.”
The issue of how to hold the Winter Olympics sustainably in a world that’s gradually warming and where natural snow is more scarce every year has become central in recent years.
“The sports movement is united behind this bid. As we intend to use existing venues and the knowledge of the organisers, the conditions are better than ever,” said Anna Iwarsson, acting president of the Swedish Sports Confederation, in a press release from the Swedish Olympic committee.
While Stockholm would be the main host of the game, other cities - including Falun, Åre and Ostersund - would also be selected for some of the events.
Sweden has never hosted the Winter Olympics before, while it hosted the Summer Games in 1912 - more than a hundred years ago. It’s not yet sure whether
The Swedish bid it facing at least two other serious candidates: Switzerland and France.
The competition in France would be spread among the Alpine cities of Chamonix, Grenoble and Albertville with the addition of the southern, sunny city of Nice, which would host indoor sports like figure skating, hockey, short track speed skating and curling.
The northern Japanese city of Sapporo and the Japanese Olympic Committee, which had previously offered to host the 2030 Winter Games, withdrew their candidacy in October after the bid was soiled by massive corruption and bid-rigging tied to the one-year delayed 2020 Tokyo Games.
The International Olympic Committee is expected to take a final decision in 2024.