Are the games already set? According to several “well-informed” sources quoted by Kyodo News, the IOC is currently holding discussions behind the scenes with the Japanese authorities in order to secure the award of the 2030 Winter Games to Sapporo as early as 2022. The sources in question say that the Olympic body is working hard to designate a single candidate between next summer and winter, the only one called upon to continue the dialogue phase. In this context, Sapporo is said to be in the lead, notably thanks to its infrastructure and its experience in hosting international events. The capital of the island of Hokkaido will conduct a survey of the prefecture’s population on the Olympic bid in March, after the Beijing Games. Its results could be decisive in the IOC’s decision to designate Sapporo as the number one candidate. The IOC would like to make this decision before the end of 2022. The bid committee has already presented a revised version of its budget. It now stands at between 2.4 and 2.6 billion dollars. With eight years to go, the race for the 2030 Winter Games also includes the Americans from Salt Lake City (but they could delay their project until 2034), the Spanish from Barcelona and the Pyrenees, and a Ukrainian project. The Canadian city of Vancouver will also launch a feasibility study on a possible bid.
