Lake Placid may be part of Quebec's 2026 Olympic bid

MIAMI (AP) Lake Placid is more than willing to be part of Quebec City's exploration of a possible bid for the 2026 Winter Olympics, the mayor of the upstate New York village said Friday.

In a statement, Lake Placid Mayor Craig Randall said Quebec City Mayor Regis Labeaume reached out this week and asked if the village would like to be included in the consideration process.

''I was flattered that Mayor Labeaume reached out to Lake Placid and I told him to please keep Lake Placid included in his investigation for possible venue use in an Olympic bid,'' Randall said in his statement, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press.

Labeaume is scheduled to meet with International Olympic Committee officials at their office in Lausanne, Switzerland, in April.

Lake Placid hosted the Winter Games in 1932 and 1980. Other cities that Quebec City would look to align with are Vancouver, British Columbia, and Calgary, Alberta, Randall said.

The IOC is encouraging future Olympic bids to re-use existing facilities in an effort to minimize cost. For example, Lake Placid has an internationally certified sliding track for bobsled, skeleton and luge at Mount Van Hoevenberg. Quebec lacks such a facility.

''We understand that the Olympic agenda would enable the host city the chance to partner with another city in order to share some events,'' Labeaume told reporters in Canada earlier this week.

Several cities in North America and Europe are believed to be considering bidding on the 2026 Games, which will be awarded by the IOC in 2019.