Grant Thomas, a former senior vice president of the 2002 Salt Lake Winter Games and an adviser to the International Olympic Committee (IOC), is stepping down from the state’s Olympic Exploratory Committee to serve as a consultant on whether Utah should bid for another Olympic Games.
According to the Deseret News, Thomas is expected to have a final report ready to submit to Governor Gary Herbert by July 1.
Herbert formed the exploratory committee last February to determine whether Utah should bid again for the Winter Games in 2022 or beyond.
Deseret News reports that exploratory committee members have said the feedback they’ve received about another bid has been positive. A poll is expected to be conducted in the coming weeks to gauge the support of Utahns for another Olympic bid.
Meanwhile Lt. Governor Greg Bell, the lead co-chairman of the exploratory committee, has reportedly said the key question is whether enough money could be raised privately to cover bid costs that could reach $30 million.
