The bid by the French Alpine regions of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur was announced in July, after French International Olympic Committee member Guy Drut suggested the two mountain areas may consider running to host the event.

And the presidents of the two regions, Laurent Wauquiez and Renaud Muselier, were due in Paris this week to outline their bids to the Comité national olympique et sportif français (CNOSF).

France – which has just hosted the Rugby World Cup 2023, and is preparing to welcome the sporting world to the 2024 Olympics in Paris – has been the venue for the Winter Olympics three times. The 1924 event was held in Chamonix, while Grenoble hosted in 1968, and Albertville in 1992. 

Holding the 2030 Winter Olympics would be “a great opportunity to continue the momentum of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games,” David Lappartient, head of the CNOSF, said.

Last month, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) voted to allow both the 2030 and 2034 Winter Games to be awarded at the same time. Applications must be submitted on November 7th before a grand oral hearing before the IOC on November 21st. The best-received bids will then go forward to a final vote in 2024.

Although its bid is late, the French bid is considered to be in with a decent chance of winning the vote. 2002 Winter Olympics’ host Salt Lake City has also submitted a bid to host the 2030 Games, but has indicated it would prefer to host in 2034, while Sweden and Switzerland have also reportedly put their hats into the ring for the winter sports extravaganza. 

Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes’ regional president Wauquiez has pledged that the bid will, “rely on existing infrastructure” for what he said would be, “the first sustainable Olympics”. As such, La Plagne slope, built for the Albertville Games in 1992, will host bobsleigh, luge and skeleton events.

The Courchevel ski jump serves as an ideal candidate for ski jumping and the Nordic combined, and the Grand Bornand for biathlon events.