IOC president expresses hopes for Swiss Olympic bid
Bach, who was elected IOC President in 2013, at a press conference last week in PyeongChang.
Keystone
Despite a recent survey showing low Swiss support for hosting the 2026 winter Olympic Games, International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach has expressed confidence in the bid. He was speaking on Monday from this year’s event in PyeongChang, South Korea.
“The debate is just beginning”, the IOC head told Swiss Public Television RTS, just one day after an opinion poll published in the Swiss media revealed that only 36% of respondents supported the so-called Sion 2026 campaign for the southern Swiss canton of Valais.
“It’s necessary to convince the Swiss that the Olympic Games can help a region, renew it, and allow it to welcome the best winter sport athletes in the world,” Bach enthused.
Despite the fact that the Swiss have a history of rejecting Olympic hosting nominations, Bach says he wants to believe that having the 2026 winter games in the alpine nation is still a possibility.
“It’s up to the Swiss to decide. I hope that the reforms made to the 2020 Olympic agenda show people that we want a feasible, sustainable event that makes use of existing or temporary infrastructures, and there Switzerland has a lot to offer.”
Train vs plane: would you take a direct train between London and Geneva?
Eurostar is planning to run direct trains from Britain to Germany and Switzerland from the early 2030s. Would you favour the train over the plane? If not, why not?
Prevention and tech could help save billions on Swiss healthcare costs, says Deloitte
This content was published on
By focusing on prevention and technology, it would be possible to reduce Switzerland's healthcare bill by CHF30 billion a year by 2040, according to Deloitte Switzerland.
Environment director warns of increasing climate-related risks in Switzerland
This content was published on
The director of the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) has warned of increasing climate-related risks in Switzerland in an interview with SonntagsBlick on Sunday.
Gotthard traffic queue hits 11km at start of holiday season
This content was published on
The start of the summer holidays saw a long traffic jam in front of the Gotthard tunnel on Saturday. Traffic jams between Erstfeld and Göschenen in canton Uri were up to 11 kilometres long early in the morning.
This content was published on
The water temperature of the Rhine River could rise by up to 4.2° degrees Celsius by the end of the century due to the warming planet, scientists warn.
This content was published on
The Federal Council wants to explore the possibilities of joining the European Union’s €800-billion rearmament programme without compromising Swiss neutrality.
Defence Minister Pfister stresses importance of Swiss mission in Balkans
This content was published on
During a visit to the Balkans region last week, Swiss Defence Minister Martin Pfister met Swisscoy peacekeeping troops in Kosovo.
Premiere for Swiss Air Force on French National Day
This content was published on
On July 14, the Swiss Air Force will take part in the traditional air parade in Paris to mark the French bank holidays with an F/A-18 fighter jet. This is a first for Switzerland.
Swiss launch competition for memorial to Nazi victims
This content was published on
The victims of Nazi Germany are to be commemorated on the Casinoterrasse in Bern. A competition will be held to determine what the site will look like.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Sion 2026: an un-Olympic dream
This content was published on
Voters may have said no to Graubünden’s candidacy for the Winter Olympics 2026, but Switzerland could still be in the running to host the event.
Swiss IOC official calls Russian doping ruling ‘shocking’
This content was published on
The head of an International Olympic Committee (IOC) probe into doping at the 2014 Sochi Games is stunned by the recent CAS ruling.
This content was published on
The Winter Olympic Games have opened in PyeongChang. South Korea. Swiss athletes were cheered on in freezing temperatures.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.