The wheel spins. And it runs fast. Two weeks after awarding two editions of the Summer Games at once, the IOC put on its snow boots and a pair of mittens. After summer, winter. The Olympic organization launched the process of selecting the host city for the Winter Games in 29 on Friday, September 2026, with the greatest discretion. It was announced as a new page in the history of bids for the Games. It is new, certainly, but unlikely to permanently change the situation.

The new things, first. They are real, but remain shy. Until then, the candidacy campaign lasted two years, summer and winter. It was shortened to 18 months. Objective: reduce costs for racing cities. Above all, the process is now split into two phases. The first is devoted to “dialogue”. She has just started. It will last a year. During these 12 months, cities "interested" in bidding for the 2026 Winter Games are invited to discuss with the IOC administration the reality of the Olympic event, on all possible aspects, starting with that from the budget. A discussion supposed to be accompanied by advice on the best way to make Olympic mayonnaise.

At the same time, a working group will be commissioned by the IOC to study in detail the strengths and weaknesses of the so-called interested cities. He will have to submit a report to the executive commission, which will propose to the members a list of files to be retained during the session in October 2018, scheduled on the sidelines of the Youth Games in Buenos Aires. Candidate cities must then officially submit their project no later than January 11, 2019.

Finally, the number of official presentations of applications is reduced to only two exercises. For each of them, the competing teams will be entitled to a limited number of accredited people.

In short, a shortened campaign, a dialogue phase before the official launch of the race, the possibility for interested cities to receive assistance from the IOC before starting the engine, a reduction in costs. The process sounds very Agenda 2020. Not sure, however, that it will reverse the trend.

The calendar now. It began on Friday September 29 with the publication, on the official IOC website, of the terms of the application process. A 57-page document available only in English. The invitation phase will end in October 2018. The official campaign will begin on January 11, 2019, the deadline for submitting applications. The evaluation commission will visit the candidate cities in March or April 2019. The candidate teams will then be invited to Lausanne, in July 2019, for a presentation of their project to the members of the IOC and the international sports federations of winter. The vote for the host city of the 2026 Winter Games will take place during the Milan session in September 2019.

The number, finally. The IOC has written it in words: its contribution to the organization of the 2026 Winter Games should amount to 925 million dollars, or 785 million euros at the current rate.

To date, the IOC has not yet registered a single official candidacy. Normal. But the Olympic organization identifies four cities potentially interested: Sion in Switzerland, Innsbruck in Austria, Calgary in Canada, Stockholm in Sweden. Correct. Only problem: each of them will have to overcome a serious obstacle before continuing the race. In Innsbruck, a referendum on the 2026 Games is scheduled for October 15. In Calgary, the City Council is delaying making a final decision. In Sion, the team in charge of the project still needs to obtain the green light from the federal government, or even take the always uncertain step of a popular vote. Finally, it is not certain that the Stockholm file will receive guarantees from the Swedish political authorities.

Will the publication of the selection process be enough to break down all the barriers, in Europe and in Canada? Not sure. Elsewhere, several other projects could come to fruition in the coming months. In the United States, where the USOC is due to discuss the subject later this October. In Turkey, where a candidacy from the city of Erzurum was mentioned. In Kazakhstan, where it is said that the Almaty file, beaten by four votes by Beijing in the race for the 2022 Games, could be brought out and updated. Finally, the Japanese are quietly preparing a bid for Sapporo. Asia, again?