What advice did the International Olympic Committee have for organizers of Utah’s 2034 Winter Games after the first formal report on their progress, delivered in Milan, Italy, just ahead of the start of the 2026 Winter Games?
Don’t get going too quickly.
“We don’t need to start organizing these Games, when we look at what we have,” the IOC’s Olympic Games executive director, Christophe Dubi, told the members gathered Tuesday for the first of two days of meetings.
Utah has the venues and the expertise from having hosted before, in 2002, Dubi said, as well as the full support of the international sports federations and help from the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee.
“The only thing we have to do is focus on the elevation. This means focusing on the experience, what truly matters. It is not what’s behind the curtain, the systems. It’s all about the experience we can bring, starting with the athletes and then, the rest of the Olympic family,” he said.
“We have all the conditions for these Games to be outstanding,” Dubi said. “The only thing I urge Utah 2034 to do is not to start planning for these Games. Think about innovations. Think about legacy. Think about elevate. But let’s not plan. We don’t need to do that at this stage.”
It’s advice Dubi has given before, during Utah’s bid to host a second Olympics.
‘Strong unified support’ for Utah Olympics
Leaders of Utah’s Organizing Committee for the 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games spent much of their 20-minute presentation talking about the broad support, including from donors to the unique Podium34 program that has now raised more than $250 million.
“We have completed the first year in our organizing committee’s journey to 2034 with extraordinary enthusiasm and strong unified support from the residents of Utah, the business community and political leaders,” Bullock told the IOC.
“Our ambition has been to stay ahead of the milestones just as we did during the future host election process, while being very efficient with resources,” he said, noting there’s only a dozen organizing committee staff members, including volunteers like himself.
Since the IOC awarded Utah a second Winter Games in July 2024, Bullock said a “gender-balanced” organizing committee board has been appointed, supplemented by a larger advisory group made up of community and business leaders, elected officials and athletes.
He said the “small but mighty” team is working to “refine our Games concept and creating the road map to 2034. Our plans are focused on welcoming you to Utah in 2034 with a compact, fantastic Olympic theater featuring one (athletes) village and all existing, sustainable Games venues.”
The organizing committee’s CEO, former Utah House speaker Brad Wilson, said the priorities are “the critical building blocks that require long lead times, transportation, technology systems, venue optimization” so they are not only ready for 2034 but also beyond.
“From the start of our project, we have been clear that these Games must elevate more than just sport alone,” Wilson said. He said in 2026, investments will be made in initiatives “to maximize our impact and legacy, including to connect to youth sport and education.”
Bullock also made a point of pitching the athletes family initiative originated by legendary skier Lindsey Vonn, a top member of the organizing committee who just announced she plans to compete in the Milan Cortina Games despite an injury.
What an Olympic champion says about Utah 2034
A late addition to the Utah 2034 presentation to the IOC was Team USA speedskater Erin Jackson, who made history as the first Black woman to win an individual Olympic speedskating medal when she took gold in the 500-meter race at the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing.
Jackson, who trains at the Utah Olympic Oval in Kearns, said she was there “not only as an Olympic champion, but also as an athlete whose life and career have been shaped by Utah.” She said it’s “a place where sport is not something you do only at the elite level, it’s a part of daily life.”
The support, she said, comes not just from the state’s facilities but also its people.
“Coaches, volunteers, families and neighbors understand what it takes to pursue excellence. This culture matters. It creates confidence, resilience and belief — qualities every Olympian depends on,” Jackson said. “It also helps that I train on the fastest ice in the world.”
That environment “has been essential to my success and to my ability to compete with the very best in the world,” she said. “Utah has given me a place to train, to learn and to belong. It’s a community that understands athletes.”
Jackson, set to defend her gold medal at the Milan Cortina Games, was excused shortly after her part in the presentation to train. But before she left, IOC President Kirsty Coventry wished Jackson good luck and encouraged her to “enjoy every moment.”
Is Utah a ‘great model’ for rotating future Winter Games?
Only a single IOC member commented after the presentation, Jae Youl Kim of South Korea.
Kim said he could attest to the report after visiting Utah last November, describing the state’s Olympic venues as being in “great shape.” He even suggested Utah would be an ideal candidate to become a permanent Winter Games host should the IOC ever decide to rotate sites.
“We’ve started talking about the rotation model,” Kim said, referring to an ongoing working group created by Coventry to look at all aspects of the Olympic program, including the possibility of rotating the Games among a set group of hosts. “Salt Lake City could be a great model.”
Bullock told reporters after the presentation, “Salt Lake would always love to host the Games. We’ll take them any time we can. But we recognize it’s a balance between universality and having a lot of countries participate, but also the reality of climate change and sustainability.”
He said there may be “some interesting solutions” coming.
The IOC’s reaction reflects that organizers are still in the early stages of getting ready for a Games, Bullock acknowledged, citing his experience as chief operating officer of the 2002 Winter Games.
“I’ve been through the honeymoon phase before, and the marriage, and all the other steps. So I know it’s coming,” he said of more critical encounters with the IOC as more detailed plans are put together.
For now, though, Bullock said, “every time we meet, it’s just exciting. It’s joyful. Because we want to welcome the world in the best way possible.”