ROME, April 6 (Xinhua) -- The Italian government guaranteed financial support for Milan-Cortina's 2026 Winter Olympics bid during the working visit of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) evaluation commission this week.
The letter of financial support from the Italian government was signed by Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte and handed to Octavian Morariu, the chair of the IOC's evaluation commissionon Friday.
The financial guarantee reportedly amount to 415 million euros (465 million U.S. dollars). Meanwhile The letter from Conte also outlined that the government would provide security for the games, handle anti-doping expenditures and coordinate visas for visiting athletes, officials and fans.
It is believed that the bid would be "very, very positive" with the financial support from the government, AFP quoted Morariu as saying.
Replicating the format from last month in Stockholm-Are (Sweden), the only other remaining candidate for 2026, the visit to Italy takes place over five days from 2 April to 6 April, and includes presentations of venues and discussions with the candidature team and local stakeholders.
The IOC will vote on the 2026 host on June 24 in Lausanne, Switzerland.
