Are you already scouting out where you'd like to sit at the E Center to watch Olympic hockey during the 2002 Winter Games? Or where you'd get the best view of ice skaters at the Delta Center?

Not so fast.Olympic organizers may end up switching the two events -- putting men's ice hockey competitions at the Delta Center and figure skating events at the E Center.

Both sports have technical requirements for competitions that might be better met by making the change, said Cathy Priestner Allinger, sports director for the Salt Lake Organizing Committee.

"It doesn't mean we'll change it," Allinger said. "We have to decide what's best for the athletes, what's best for the sports . . . It's really just what's the best fit."

The decision will likely be made in the spring. International sports officials from both hockey and figure skating federations are scheduled to visit Salt Lake City next February to evaluate the two arenas.

The organizing committee is expected to have a schedule of events for the Olympics finished by the end of 1999. The schedule must be approved by the International Olympic Committee.

During the bid effort, the Delta Center was the choice for figure skating -- and, at one time, men's ice hockey. Later, it was determined that a separate facility would be needed.

It was expected to be built in Salt Lake City. But after Salt Lake City won the bid, organizers decided to help fund a hockey stadium in West Valley City that is now home to the Utah Grizzlies, a minor-league hockey team.

The Delta Center has long been criticized as not being a good place to watch hockey because some seats don't have a clear view of the ice. The arena was designed for basketball, which is played on a smaller surface than hockey.

Allinger said that's not a concern. She said organizers are no longer talking about raising the floor of the Delta Center to improve the views, a costly proposition.

There are some 13,000 seats available in the Delta Center, compared to about 10,000 in the E Center. Both men's ice hockey and figure skating are high-demand events for Olympic ticket buyers.

Making a move would affect another Olympic event, short-track speed-skating. Those events are now scheduled at the Delta Center, but would likely go with ice skating to the E Center.

The possibility of the venue changes came up Wednesday during a meeting of the Legislature's Sports Advisory Committee. Allinger was asked to explain what the Cottonwood Heights Recreation Center would be used for in 2002.

At one time, the ice rink there was set to be the site of curling. Recreation center officials were counting on rental payments totaling about $100,000 plus improvements to the facility.

When Provo stepped up with a new ice arena, though, Olympic organizers decided to move women's ice hockey from the Ice Sheet in Ogden to the Provo site. Ogden got curling, and Cottonwood Heights was named a practice venue.

Now, though, Salt Lake City is going forward with plans to build a pair of ice rinks at the Steiner Aquatic Center near the University of Utah, with $3 million from SLOC.

The money was promised back in 1995, when Salt Lake City lost the hockey venue to West Valley City. The new rinks, along with several others in the area, may mean Olympic organizers no longer need Cottonwood Heights.

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Allinger said that's yet to be determined. And whatever decision is made, Olympic organizers said they intend to honor their contract with Cottonwood Heights.

Still, Richard Guthrie, director of the Salt Lake County Service Area No. 2, said Cottonwood Heights may suffer financially because the other ice rinks will take away revenue, hurting taxpayers.

Guthrie told the Legislative committee that Cottonwood Heights has been a longtime supporter of the Olympics. Their reward, though, "appears to be a seat in front of our TV sets," he said.

Rep. Jordan Tanner, R-Provo, the co-chairman of the Sports Advisory Committee, said lawmakers would keep an eye on what happens to Cottonwood Heights.

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