GENEVA - Six cities have submitted bids to host the 2022 Olympic Winter Games, twice as many compared to four years earlier, after the deadline for applications passed on Thursday.

The bid cities are: Almaty (Kazakhstan), Beijing (China), Krakow (Poland), Lviv (Ukraine), Oslo (Norway), and Stockholm (Sweden).

The International Olympic Committee said the field includes "a strong mix of both traditional and developing winter sports markets" and "highlights the keen interest cities around the world have in the Games and the lasting benefits and legacy they can bring to a region."

"I am delighted that six cities are bidding to host the 2022 Olympic Winter Games," said IOC President Thomas Bach.

"These cities and their supporters clearly understand the benefits that hosting the Games can have and the long lasting legacy that a Games can bring to a region. Indeed, while recent Games have left an array of sporting, social, economic and other legacies for the local population, many cities that did not go on to win the right to host the Games have also noted benefits as a result of their bids."

The six applicant cities will be invited to attend a seminar in Lausanne from 4 to 6 December 2013 and to participate in an Observer Program tailored to their needs during the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games.

The six cities must submit their detailed bid files to the IOC by March 14. The IOC Executive Board will then select the cities that will move forward to Phase 2 of the process as candidate cities.

An IOC evaluation commission will visit those candidate cities in February and March 2015, before the IOC select the host city by secret ballot on July 31, 2015.