The committee tasked with creating a formal bid for the City of Calgary to host the 2026 Olympic Winter Games has now released a list of the first set of people, including a number of Olympians, who will form the board.

Earlier this month, the City of Calgary announced Scott Hutcheson, chairperson at WinSport, as chair of the team, now known as Calgary 2026 that would complete the bid exploration and development work that began back in 2016.

Officials say he will lead a 21-member board consisting of three representatives from the Government of Canada, three from the Government of Alberta, three from the City of Calgary, one from the Town of Canmore, two members at large (including one First Nations representative), three from the Canadian Olympic Committee, one from the Canadian Paralympic Committee and four other members to be decided later.

Now, Hutcheson has named with first 16 members of that team that includes six-time Olympian Hayley Wickenheiser, who will serve as vice-chair.

"As a young child, I remember coming to Calgary to watch the 1988 Games. That Olympic experience changed my life, and I was driven every day after that to become an Olympian. I competed in a home Games in 2010 and I want the Olympics back in Canada. There is so much involved in a bid, and I am honoured to have the opportunity to work with these great Canadians, and the Calgary community, to ensure its viability," said Wichenheiser in a release.

Catriona Le May Doan, three-time Olympic medallist, and former COC president Dick Pound have also been named to the board.

"Hayley, Catriona and Dick are simply legends in the Olympic and Paralympic movement, and are remarkably well respected by all Canadians," Hutcheson said in a release. "I'm looking forward to gaining their insight and working with all of the board members to engage the community as we explore deeper Calgary's bid for the 2026 Games."

The current list of the board for Calgary 2026 is as follows:

  • Chair – Scott Hutcheson
  • At Large, Vice Chair – Hayley Wickenheiser
  • Government of Canada members (one more to be named) – Catriona Le May Doan and Grand Chief Wilton Littlechild
  • Government of Alberta members – Meryl Whittaker, Ray Gilmour and Corey Hogan
  • City of Calgary members – Jeff Fielding, Manjit Minhas and Chris Lee
  • Town of Canmore member – Lisa de Soto
  • Canadian Olympic Committee members – Dick Pound, Tricia Smith and Chris Overholt
  • Canadian Paralympic Committee member – Marc-Andre Fabien
  • At Large – Jude Daniels

The board has yet to hire a CEO and will work to put together a formal bid book that needs to be submitted to the International Olympic Committee in January 2019.