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Mayor Naheed Nenshi said he’s asked for an explanation of why the names of staff members hired to explore a potential 2026 Olympic bid are secret.

While taxpayer dollars are being used to pay the salaries of 11 staff members, the Calgary Bid Exploration Committee has refused to disclose who nine of the paid employees are and what they do, citing concerns over privacy.

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“I was surprised to see that that information was being withheld,” Nenshi said Thursday.

“I have asked for a very good rationale for why that is being withheld because, frankly, I would like to celebrate the great people they’ve hired.”

Last week, following repeated requests from Postmedia for a staff list, Calgary Bid Exploration Committee spokesman Sean Beardow said, “staff has not consented to have their private information shared publicly.”

Beardow, general manager Brian Hahn and the nine other unnamed staff members are drawing a salary from a portion of the $5 million Calgary city council voted in June to withdraw from its rainy-day fund to study a Winter Olympics bid.