The body will feature representatives from the cantons of Valais, Vaud and Friborg, as well as the city of Sion.

Frédéric Favre, a Valaisan state councillor, will chair the committee.

Its aim will be to liaise with the cantons of Switzerland on all matters, including political, legal and financial issues.

The goal is to maximise resources and expertise available as Switzerland seeks to host the Winter Games for the first time since St Moritz did so in 1948.

Particular issues will be ensuring a compact Games, using as much existing infrastructure as possible to minimise environmental impact.

Costs acceptable to local authorities and the public will also be key to discussions, as well as the Winter Paralympics.

Regular contact with the Sion Organising Committee is expected, and the canton of Bern could also join the political group in the coming weeks.  

Sion was confirmed as the Swiss candidate for 2026 in April.

The city's bid was unanimously rubber-stamped in April by the Parliament of Sport, the highest authority for sport in Switzerland.

It means that Sion, the capital of the canton of Valais, will bid for the Winter Olympics for a fourth time.

The city in the south-west of the country was first nominated as a candidate for the Games on March 7 by Swiss Olympic.

It followed the collapse of another potential bid from the canton of Graubünden, following a referendum defeat.

The threat of a future referendum can also not be ruled out in Sion.

The city was considered the favourite in the 2006 Winter Olympic race, but was beaten 53 votes to 36 by Turin at the 108th International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session in Seoul in 1999.

The vote coincided with the Salt Lake City 2002 bribery scandal, which had been sparked by Swiss IOC member Marc Hodler.

He accused the United States city of using bribery to win its bid, where the defeated cities included Sion. 

The scandal led to the expulsion of six IOC members. 

Sion also bid for the 1976 Winter Olympics, when they were beaten 39-30 by Denver.

The American city later withdrew following a referendum and the Games were held in Innsbruck in Austria instead. 

St Moritz also staged the Winter Olympics in 1928. 

If the Swiss bid is successful, it will see the Games held in the home country of the IOC, which is based in Lausanne.

The Olympic capital will host the Winter Youth Olympic Games in 2020 while another Swiss city, Lucerne, will stage the 2021 Winter Universiade.

Innsbruck are also considering bidding for the 2026 Winter Olympics and could be joined by Sapporo and Calgary, which hosted the Games in 1972 and 1988 respectively.

Erzurum in Turkey could be another candidate.