AP

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Three county governors in Sweden have expressed "strong support" for the 2026 Winter Olympics to be held in their regions.

Ylva Thorn, Jotan Hagglund and Sven-Erik Osterberg — the heads of the counties of Dalarna, Jamtland and Stockholm — say they are "very proud of the bid."

The trio says in a statement "the whole concept" is to "include already existing arenas and use already planned investments as a go ahead for the games."

In 2017, Stockholm announced the city would not submit its expected bid after the mayor had expressed concern about the costs. In October, the capital's newly formed local government said the city's taxpayers will not be asked to foot the bill. Sweden's caretaking government has said it would not provide funding to host the games in Stockholm.

The other candidate for the 2026 Olympics is a combined Italian bid from Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo. A vote of IOC members is scheduled for June.

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This story has been corrected to show that there are two bids for the 2026 Winter Olympics, not three.