
Reporting from Salt Lake City, Utah – The International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Future Host Commission (FHC) was welcomed to Salt Lake City with iconic downtown buildings lit up gold on the eve of the first meeting with bid and government officials.
On Wednesday morning the IOC and the Salt Lake City Winter Games bid committee (SLC-UT) met at Rice-Eccles Stadium at Utah University for an introductory meeting and presentation that was open to the media. Later, more constructive planning discussions proceeded behind closed doors.
The IOC stayed on script, reiterating that the four day visit is not merely a formality but a required exercise following the selection of the Utah capital as the preferred host for 2034 among Sweden, Switzerland and potentially other regions.
This visit “is very important to the IOC and for the Future Host Commission,” Commission chair Karl Stoss told reporters during a break from the morning meeting.
“All the different parties have now the chance to go into a deeper dive and a deeper discussion with Salt Lake City and maybe to help them.”
The IOC delegation has members from sport federations and national Olympic committees as well as athlete representatives. Stoss said the discussions are an opportunity to be constructive and to optimize the Games plans.
Stoss said the Commission was verifying that the proposed venues – most from the 2002 Games – remain at acceptable standards and still provide the proper spectator capacity. He also said that the Commission can share advice that will “save a lot of money.”
It was made clear by all parties Wednesday that this bid is the right choice for 2034 and it will likely get the nod from the IOC’s Executive Board, and then the general membership.
“We have a very good feeling,” Stoss said.
“This one is the right concept, to bring the athletes together in an Olympic Village and then very close to the venues.”
Bid officials say that athletes will be no more than one hour from the Olympic Village.
For contrast, the IOC elected Italy’s Milan-Cortina bid for the 2026 Winter Games with a widespread venue plan across Northern Italy that will require multiple Olympic Villages. At the time the IOC Evaluation Commission said the regional Games concept was acceptable due to the sustainable use of existing and temporary venues.
The delegation was given a tour of Rice-Eccles Stadium that is proposed to once again stage the opening and closing ceremonies – the 2002 cauldron remains just outside the entrance of the facility.
Both teams assembled on the football-configured field for a group photo and Stoss once again offered praise.
“It’s an incredible stadium perfect for closing and opening ceremony,” he said.
Previously, similarly organized evaluation commissions carried out formalized site inspections to all cities accepted as candidates. Those meetings became the basis of evaluation reports that were used by the IOC membership to casts ballots for the winner.
Detailed reports will still be generated under the new process but these will represent the due diligence IOC members expect before agreeing to elect the Utah capital to host the 2034 Games.
This week stakeholders on both sides of the table will work together to develop plans and discussions will help build the contents of the host agreement that will be signed when the membership rubberstamps the bid at a Session July 24 in Paris.
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Check out our Liveblog for Day 1
LIVEBLOG: The IOC visits Salt Lake City 2034 – Day 1