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The rejection of the Olympic proposal by Graubünden voters has halted the Graubünden 2022 project. The Graubünden 2022 association regrets this decision, as it is completing what is currently the only, future-oriented major project for tourism, business and sport in Grisons.

Before the IOC awards the 2022 Olympic Games, Switzerland will have clarity on all aspects of the Grisons 2022 project and its costs. In negotiations with the IOC, it will then be clarified whether or not it will accept the concept of the snow-white games under the guidelines of the Swiss initiators. If it turns out that the core values of the project known today cannot be met, the candidacy will be withdrawn before the award is made on July 31, 2015.

Seven mountaineers covered the high-alpine route from Davos to St. Moritz during the night from Thursday to Friday. They delivered a flag from Davos and a symbolic message to the municipality of St. Moritz. The campaign was called “Davoson” in reference to the marathon run. It is intended to symbolize the connection between the two Olympic candidate locations for 2022.

The decentralized hosting of the 2022 Winter Olympics at three or more locations would result in massive additional costs and high, additional traffic volumes in the canton of Grisons. This was the result of preliminary studies by the Grisons Association 2022. For a decentralized organization, one or more Olympic Villages and Media Centers would have to be created in addition and the transport system would have to be expanded. It was therefore rejected early on in the feasibility assessment.

Nine years before the Winter Olympics and Paralympics were held in Grisons, over 1000 volunteers have already signed up for assignments. Graubünden's expectations for 2022 were thus far exceeded. A total of over 20,000 volunteers are needed to host the 2022 Winter Games. Holding the Winter Olympics will underline and sustainably promote the importance of volunteer work in Swiss society beyond sport.

The Federal Council is in favour of a federal guarantee for a possible deficit at the Winter Olympics in Grisons in 2022. The state government thus supports previous statements by Federal President Ueli Maurer that the federal government will provide the International Olympic Committee with a deficit guarantee for the holding of the Winter Olympics. The last fears that the canton of Grisons or the host cities might have to pay for a deficit have now been definitively dispelled.

The risks of cost overruns at the Olympic Winter Games are lower than commonly assumed. An analysis by Graubünden 2022 shows that, since 1994, four out of five editions have completed their operational budgets without losses. Alongside the analysis, a revised balanced operational budget for Graubünden 2022 was also presented: a total of 376 million Swiss francs can be saved, two thirds of that through temporary structures.

The NIV process on sustainability, innovation and legacy of Grisons 2022 is producing initial, concrete results. In the first NIV report, Graubünden 2022 publishes projects that can be tackled after a “yes” to the Olympic candidacy. The candidacy will be subject to the principles of sustainability and the budget for NIV projects will be increased by 80 percent to 5.2 million francs.

Graubünden has redesigned the Olympic Village in Davos in 2022: The accommodation for 4,000 athletes and coaches will be located in the area between the Solaria holiday home settlement and the center of Davos Dorf. Only 30% of the accommodation capacity is to be built in temporary buildings. The first concept with a significantly higher proportion of temporary buildings between Wolfgang and Lake Davos is therefore off the table.

A scientific study by the Rütter+Partner research network has evaluated the relevant opportunities and risks of Grisons in 2022. Opportunities are reflected in high added value and job creation; risks could arise if the sustainable concept were changed after the games were awarded. The Graubünden 2022 association has already taken the potential risks into account in its clarifications and is preparing the candidacy for the best possible use of its opportunities.

Sport in Switzerland will benefit sustainably from running for the Olympics and holding the 2022 Winter Olympics, as top-class sport serves as an engine for popular, young and disabled sport and its financing. Sports experts and coaches expressed this opinion at a media conference in Davos. Games in their own country regularly lead to significant improvements in the elite's performance and are therefore a motivation boost for young people to participate in sports.

The sustainability of the Winter Olympics is made verifiable on the basis of binding sustainability goals. Sustainability experts and representatives from business, science, sports and society have developed a binding NIV Charter with sustainability goals on behalf of Graubünden in 2022. As part of the NIV process on sustainability, innovation and legacy, an innovation process was also launched, which will help find answers to the challenges in the Alpine region with specific projects. From the perspective of the Graubünden government, the NIV process is a decisive success factor for the Graubünden Olympic candidacy.

The leading associations and service providers of Graubünden Tourism as well as the bourgeois national and state councils of Grisons are behind Grisons Olympic candidacy in 2022. The presidents of Grisons Vacations, Bergbahnen Grisons and Hotelleriesüisse Grisons emphasized the importance of winter tourism for the canton at a media briefing in Chur together with the bourgeois Grisons National and State Councils. Everyone present was convinced of the positive effects of an Olympic candidacy on tourism in Graubünden.

The question of how the Winter Olympics can create a long-term legacy brought around 50 experts from all over Switzerland to Davos over the weekend. As part of Graubünden's NIV Dialogue 2022, they worked on developing concrete projects that can then be promoted through an Olympic candidacy.

The Winter Olympics in Graubünden in Switzerland can result in direct total sales of between 3.7 and 4 billion Swiss francs up to 2022 through candidacy spending, implementation costs, investments and additional tourism effects and generate up to one and a half million additional overnight stays. This is shown by an independent study commissioned by the Grisons Association 2022, which was presented to the public on Tuesday. Both candidacy and implementation have an impact beyond Grisons: More than half of the value-added and employment effects occur outside the canton.

54.6 percent of Swiss people are in favour of a Graubünden Olympic candidacy. This was the result of a representative survey by Isopublic commissioned by SonntagsBlick. The majority of people under 35 years of age is even larger: Almost three quarters of those surveyed say they are in favour of running. At 60 percent, approval is also particularly high in the foothills of the Alps and Alps.

The Winter Olympics should only be held in Switzerland if it is possible to establish a new generation of Games that are committed to the idea of sustainability and social added value. This vision of the Graubünden Association 2022 is now being realized in a guided process. Under the title “Sustainability — Innovation — Legacy” (NIV), a high-level, independent committee led by former IOC Director General Urs Lacotte was formed on Wednesday. Broad-based working groups are now working on various topics — the first results will be available in December.

The Graubünden government supports a candidacy for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Graubünden. It has adopted the corresponding message to the Grand Council and has provided concrete information on investment projects in the canton for the first time. The people of Graubünden will vote on a Graubünden Olympic candidacy on March 3, 2013. The bill receives broad support in the canton: The non-partisan committee “Yes to Grisons 2022" has been constituted and continues to grow daily.

Impressions after three weeks at the Olympic Games in London.

The project for the snow-white Winter Olympics in Grisons is a topic of conversation in London: At the invitation of Presence Switzerland and Swiss Olympic, the Grisons Association will be providing information on the ideas for the Winter Olympics of a new generation at the House of Switzerland. Federal Councillor Ueli Maurer and many international sports celebrities are expected this Tuesday evening.

The St. Moritz Village Association is opening the new series “St. Moritz Village Talk” with a hot topic: On June 20, well-known business experts will discuss the current situation of the global health resort of St. Moritz and its prospects for the future with local decision makers and the audience. The leading figures from politics, tourism, industry, hotels and gastronomy are testing tourism and business experts. The event in Restaurant Posthaus is public and admission is free. The door opens at 19:45 h; the conversation starts at 20:15 h

The awarding of the 2017 Alpine Ski World Championships to St. Moritz is a positive sign of Switzerland's bid for the Olympics in Grisons 2022. By choosing St. Moritz, the FIS Ski Association has given a clear vote for Switzerland as the host country of major sporting events. The 2017 World Ski Championships give Switzerland the opportunity to show the sports world how it can hold a major sporting event at the highest level in harmony with nature and as a friendly host.

The Graubünden 2022 Olympic bid has overcome a first, important hurdle: The Sports Parliament, the highest body of Swiss Olympic, voted unanimously on Thursday in favour of a Swiss candidacy for the 2022 Winter Olympics. Media interest was already very high: the topic of “Olympics in Switzerland” is growing in the public's perception.

The Graubünden 2022 association is delighted that the sports parliament's resounding “yes” to a Graubünden 2022 candidacy. Switzerland's Olympic sports associations clearly supported the candidacy by Swiss Olympic with 76 votes to 0. This allows work on the “White Games” in Engadin and the Davos countryside to continue. Following a referendum in Grisons and discussion by the Federal Council and Federal Councils, the candidacy is to be submitted to the IOC in September 2013.