IOC President Thomas Bach visited Utah for the first time since the 2002 Olympic Games last week to tour the state’s Olympic facilities. He said Saturday he didn’t recognize much of what he saw, because Utah has had many great developments since his last visit.
What Bach saw clearly, though, was the Olympic spirit alive in Utah and great-looking venues. But, he said, it will still take hard work to get the state completely ready for the Games to arrive in 10 years.
“[It’s] hard work to get ready and to keep the momentum of this excitement,” Bach said. “And then to think in a very innovative way, because what we are expecting from these games in ‘34 are Olympic Winter Games adapted to the needs of our time.”
Bach specifically referenced the need for sustainability in the Winter Games.
According to Bach, Utah’s important first step in preparing to host the Games is to form an Olympic Organizing Committee. He said the committee must be formed by December.
“We hope very much that by then, we will have an organizing committee which is representing this unified effort here by the public authorities and the private sector, benefiting from the experience of 2002 and at the same time looking into the future.”
Utah will also need to secure funding ahead of hosting the Games. But since Los Angeles is hosting the 2028 Summer Olympics, domestic sponsorships for the Beehive State are off the table until after 2028. In the meantime, Utah’s Organizing Committee must raise funding from donors.
However, Bach said he received encouraging news from the private sector that there will be money to bridge the gap.
