Calgary's potential Winter Olympic bid has been handed Government support ©Getty Images

Canadian city Calgary will receive significant financial support from two levels of Government if it decides to move forward with a bid for the 2026 Winter Olympics and Paralympics.

The Federal Government and the Provincial Government in Alberta will both contribute CAD$10 million (£5 million/$8 million/€6 million) to help form a Bid Corporation, according to Global News.

This has been confirmed in a report on the Games which will be considered by Calgary City Council on Wednesday (March 21).

If the city, the host of the 1988 Winter Olympics, does decide to proceed, the new Bid Corporation will include representation from the Canadian Olympic Committee, the Governments of Canada and Alberta, the Canadian Paralympic Committee and indigenous communities.

Calgary and Canmore will also be represented.

The city council will also be asked to approve CAD$2.5 million (£1.3 million/$2 million/€1.5 million) in extra funding at Wednesday's meeting, it has been reported.

According to Global News, councillor Jeromy Farkas will use the meeting to call for a referendum on a potential bid with a simple yes or no question.

Farkas last month warned that a bid "did not make sense" despite a survey reportedly revealing high support in the area.

Calgary hosted the Winter Olympics in 1988 ©Getty Images
Calgary hosted the Winter Olympics in 1988 ©Getty Images

Calgary has estimated it will cost CAD$30 million (£17 million/$24 million/€19 million) to bid for the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Last June, the Calgary Bid Exploration Committee predicted that hosting in 2026 would cost around CAD$4.6 billion (£2.6 billion/$3.6 billion/€2.9 billion).

Financial commitments are a main subject for debate when deciding if the city should bid, with Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi not making any declarations either way.

Countries interested in bidding for 2026 must inform the International Olympic Committee (IOC) of their interest by March 31 so time is running out, however.

Sion in Switzerland, Stockholm in Sweden, Sapporo in Japan, Erzurum in Turkey and Graz and Schladming in Austria are other contenders in the 2026 race.

An Italian bid from Milan or Turin is also increasingly possible.

United States, Kazakhstan and Norway have decided to concentrate on potentially bidding for the 2030 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. 

After March 31, bidders will plan more details about their bid before the IOC Session votes to decide the official candidates in October.

A host should then be chosen next year.