[Olympics] Ukraine Likely to Bid for Winter Olympics Amid War Threat

Kyoto Emerges as Candidate City for 2030 Games
Expected to Compete with Sapporo, Salt Lake City, and Others

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Ukraine, suffering from the threat of invasion by Russia, is expected to bid to host the 2030 Winter Olympics.

According to local media reports on the 18th, Vadym Huttsait, Ukraine's Minister of Youth and Sports, stated in parliament that "although winter sports facilities are lacking, we are preparing to bid." If the bid is formalized, the capital Kyiv is likely to emerge as the candidate city. It is expected to compete with Sapporo in Japan, Salt Lake City in the United States, and Vancouver in Canada. Ukraine is also striving to host the 2030 World Expo in Odesa, competing against Busan, Moscow in Russia, Rome in Italy, and Riyadh in Saudi Arabia.

As of the 18th, Ukraine won one silver medal at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. The medalist was Oleksandr Abramenko in freestyle skiing, who received congratulations from Ilya Burov of the Russian Olympic Committee, who was pushed down to bronze after the rankings were finalized. The New York Times praised this scene, saying it "transcended the heightened tensions between the two countries." The Associated Press also complimented it, saying "it showed that the Olympic spirit is still alive."

Meanwhile, the 2026 Winter Olympics will be held across Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo in Italy.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.