The following is excerpted from the Deseret News. To read the full article, CLICK HERE.
Whether it’s in 2030 or 2034, Utah is more ready and capable to host a Winter Olympics than any other place on earth.
The United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee knows this. So, we believe, does the International Olympic Committee. Utah has active venues in place, and still operating, from the 2002 Winter Games. It has demonstrated the fiscal smarts to host the Games while controlling costs. And it has consistent support from the public, many of whom served as volunteers in 2002, helping to keep costs low while providing a friendly, hometown atmosphere to a major international event.
Unfortunately, the Olympics is seldom completely divorced from international politics. IOC officials said recently that the U.S. government’s decision to wage a diplomatic boycott of this year’s Beijing Games to protest China’s human rights record left a “bad feeling” among some members, as did a congressional hearing on Olympic sponsorship by American companies.
As the Deseret News reported, IOC Olympic Games Executive Director Christophe Dubi told a virtual news conference it is important to “have everybody aligned” in support of the host venue, wherever that happens to be.
We trust these ultimately will be minor issues. Unlike the 1980 U.S. boycott of the Moscow Games, U.S. athletes were allowed to participate in Beijing. Diplomatic relations continue between Washington and Beijing.
The other, more relevant concern is that the IOC may be reluctant to stage the Winter Games on U.S. soil only 18 months after staging the Summer Games in Los Angeles in 2028. That might make 2034 in Salt Lake City the viable option.
Either way, Utah is ready and able to put on a great show, as it did in 2002.
As we have said before, the Olympics are fraught with challenges, from unforeseen pandemics to the possible effect of inflation or global recession. But everyday life is also filled with risks and in this case, winning the bid to host another Olympics is worth every risk.
To read the full article, CLICK HERE.
