The first of four seminars was held last month and focused on the theme of “National and International visions for a Swiss Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games”.

The latest was aimed at assisting the interested parties with the organisational side of the Games, with the workshop studying the latest International Olympic Committee recommendations for bidding cities.

Different parts of the country are represented within the five bids, including a joint effort by western French-speaking cantons entitled "Swiss Made Winter Games".

An "Olympic Winter Games 2026 Graubünden and partners" attempt has also been launched along with a "Central Switzerland 2026" bid.

Two others are entitled "Switzerland 2026" and "2026 - Games for our future", with full details of precisely what they represent still to be compiled.

Jörg Schild, Swiss Olympic President, revealed after the latest workshop that they are hoping to develop a flexible but highly competitive bid for the Games.

“Today, the IOC no longer imposes strict standards or minimum requirements,” he said.

“The IOC is now much more flexible in its approach to evaluating an Olympic Games bid, which is one of the concrete effects of the Olympic Agenda 2020.

“It is this flexibility that makes a Swiss bid possible, because now we can propose a concept which makes real sense for our country while at the same time remaining very competitive on the international stage.

“Finding the best way to balance both interests is fundamental, and this was at the heart of our discussions.”

Swiss Olympic have been keen to stress that the bids should not only have a strong positive impact in Switzerland, but for the Olympic Movement in general.

To further the point, Olympic specialists from around the world, including former bidders and organisers of Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, are being invited to take part in the seminars to help guide the projects.

Former IOC marketing director Michael Payne attended the latest meeting and praised the process Swiss Olympic are engaging in as they look to select a candidate to put forward.

“The fact that an important winter sports nation in the heart of Europe can produce interest from five separate regions, and engage in an open and constructive dialogue about the positive impact that the Games can have on an economy and on a society, is proof that the Olympic Movement is in very good health,” he said.

“I hope that other countries will get inspiration from this process and I wish the best of luck to Switzerland for 2026.”

Each project now has until December 15 to finalise its bid, before a winner will be selected.

In the meantime, two more seminars will be held to assist the bidders with their work in September and October.

Earlier this week a survey by DemoSCOPE suggested that 57 per cent of people would support Switzerland's candidacy.

It will come as a boost to Swiss Olympic, after a number of candidacies failed in recent years, including for the 2006 Winter Olympics and Paralympics when Sion, the capital of canton Valais, was defeated by Turin.

Other bids from Graubünden, Bern, Zurich, Lausanne and Geneva have all failed because of local opposition or because Swiss Olympic did not support them.

The 2026 bid could still be abandoned if a suitable project does not emerge.