IOC Ready for Return to Utah to Tour 2034 Olympic Venues

Christophe Dubi channeled his inner Arnold Schwarzenegger when describing the near-certain return of the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games to Salt Lake City.

“We will be back — and that’s probably what we all thought in 2002 when leaving Salt Lake City,” said the International Olympic Commission’s Olympic Games executive director. “It was such a great experience for the entire Olympic family. … it’s very exciting for many of us who have not returned from that time. To be back in Salt Lake is certainly a fabulous prospect.”

As part of the IOC’s assessment, the Future Host Commission will visit the region from April 9–13 for a series of venue inspections, meetings with government officials on both the local and state level and more.

“We want it to be a collaborative event that demonstrates the partnership between the IOC and the future hosts,” said Jacqueline Barrett, IOC Future Olympic Games Hosts director.

The Salt Lake City-Utah Committee for the Games officially submitted its bid to host the 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in late February to the International Olympic Committee with an eye toward being officially announced as the host for a future Games on July 24 on Pioneer Day, the state’s official holiday, during the IOC Session in Paris ahead of the 2024 Olympic Summer Games.

The International Olympic Committee’s Future Host Commission invited Salt Lake to targeted dialogue for 2034 in late November with the French Alps region for targeted dialogue with an eye toward the 2030 Games. After the IOC Future Host Commission visit, the IOC Executive Board is expected to put Salt Lake City forward for election during its meeting June 12-14 ahead of the official announcement in Paris.

“This is part of the process where the commission itself works with the executive board and allows for a lot of consultation back and forth,” Dubi said. “We can’t wait to be back in Salt Lake City.”

Hosting the Olympic Games in 2034 would make Salt Lake City the fifth city to host the Winter Games twice, joining Lake Placid, New York (1932 and 1980); St. Moritz, Switzerland (1928 and 1948); Innsbruck, Austria (1964 and 1976) and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, which hosted the 1956 Games and will co-host the 2026 Games with Milan.

“What’s fabulous to see is that Salt Lake and Utah are so enthusiastic and so keen on hosting the Games again,” Barrett said. “I think that is clearly a demonstration of what was a fabulously successful Games, a great experience. They want to recreate that for a new generation.”

The IOC’s earlier feasibility study on the Salt Lake bid praised its 2002 legacy, including 100 percent use of existing venues that were used in 2002 and still maintained. There will be no significant capital investment required with the venue plan all within an hour of the main Athletes Village.

The future host questionnaire sent by the IOC was 43 questions and SLC-Utah organizers replied with 343 pages with 26 site plans, 18 studies and reports and 52 spreadsheets among other parts. There also were 32 annexes to develop and 23 sets of guarantees, which results in more than 200 contracts.

There are a few contracts still to finalize, notably the joint marketing program agreement with the USOPC. Also needed by the end of the month is government guarantees for the Games should revenue generated by tickets, sponsorship and broadcast rights does not match the budgetary needs.

“They’re not first timers,” Dubi said of the SLC-Utah organizers. “(2002 is) a long time ago but the logic of organizing and delivering the event is the same.”