Calgary Stampede lost $8.3 million in 2021 due to pandemic

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TheCEO, Joel Cowley, said the organization couldn't afford to put money down on its long termdebt over the past two years andtook on new loans.

However, he's confident after this year, it will again have capacity to service its obligations.

Cowley credits Stampede's survival to prudent financial management in the years before COVID-19 hit.

"Leading up to the pandemic, there was a true focus on paying down debt and that contributed greatly to our ability to survive this pandemic because we had some capacity to take on some debt at that point," he told reporters.

"After two years of loss, we feel like we're going to have a good 2022 Stampede."

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The annual Stampede event in July is key to the organization's bottom line. In a typical year, it generates about 60 per cent of the organization'sannual revenues.

Cowley said the Omicron variant cut into bookings at the BMO Centre for meetings and events in the first quarter of this year.

There's been a bounce back since then, although he added that overall, staffing is still 60 per cent of its normal number.

Mayor Jyoti Gondek said she's happythat the Stampede thinks it canpull itself out of the financial ditch it was thrown into by the pandemic.

"Calgary Stampede suffered a tremendous blow by not being able to have an event that they rely for a lot of their revenue generation," said the mayor.

"For them to be able to come back this year and say 'we're going to be okay' is a very big testament to their ability to build on that brand that they have. Their reputation is strong. People are coming back because they know that this is an organization that is resilient."

This year's Stampede will run from July 8 to 17.