Swiss Olympic Committee Ratifies Sion's Bid To Host 2026 Games

Sion's bid to host the 2026 Winter Olympics was "ratified by the Swiss Olympic committee on Tuesday," according to Brian Homewood of REUTERS. The candidacy was approved by Swiss Olympic's exec board last month but "still needed the backing of the country's 86 sports federations, the so-called sport parliament, which it received at an assembly." The federations also agreed to provide $8M from Swiss Olympic reserves to "fund the first stage of the bid." Venues "would be spread around Valais" and the neighboring cantons of Fribourg, Berne and Vaud. Swiss Olympic said that the next step "would be to ask for support from the Swiss government, which could insist on a referendum" (REUTERS, 4/11).