Ukraine says it is “determined” to host Winter Olympics, begins conversations with IOC

It was revealed on Monday by the International Olympic Committee that Ukraine is “determined” to host the Winter Olympics. The eastern European nation has officially entered the IOC’s dialogue phase.

IOC President Thomas Bach visited Ukraine over the weekend to celebrate the 30-year anniversary of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine, during which Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky informed Bach of the country’s strong interest.

While Europe has held more than double the number of Olympic Games than any other continent — 30 to North America’s 12 — only two of those Olympics were in eastern Europe, both taking place in Russia (the 1980 summer edition in Moscow and 2014 winter edition in…