A delegation of elected officials, athletes and bid campaigners is headed to Paris next week, where the International Olympic Committee will vote on whether to return the Olympics to Salt Lake City in 2034.
The bid team will be accompanied by several Park residents, including Youth Sports Alliance Executive Director Emily Fisher.
“The chair of the bid committee, Katherine Rainey Norman, reached out to me and said, 'We're really impressed with the work you're doing with the Youth Sports Alliance and we'd love to have some of your athletes come along on the bid to help spread the message about what the Olympics can bring to the community, not just over the 17 days of the Games but as a legacy for the future,'” Fisher said.
Youth Sports Alliance, a nonprofit that runs a variety of after-school recreational programs for Wasatch Back youth, grew out of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
Fischer will travel to France with several YSA athletes, including luger Orson Colby.
“[Colby is] “He's 18 years old and a member of the Wasatch Luge Club,” Fischer said, “and he discovered luge while studying for his Boy Scouts Merit Badge, but he's part of the 2002 Olympic legacy. He trains with the Wasatch Luge Club, which we support through JANS Winter Welcome, and we've supported him with a scholarship from the Stein Eriksen Foundation. He competed in the Youth Olympic Games and Junior World Championships last year.”
Figure skater Kate Pressgrove is also due to join the delegation.
“[Pressgrove is] “She's 16 years old and a member of the Park City Figure Skating Club,” Fischer said. “She's a really special young athlete in the area. She trains incredibly hard and has also been the recipient of the Stein Eriksen Fund Scholarship from the Youth Sports Alliance for a number of years. It's really exciting to have athletes like this come and join us.”
Tom Kelly, a spokesman for Utah's 2034 bid, said Paris also plans to attract private donors.
“We are completely privately funded and we will be completely privately funded for the 2034 Olympics,” Kelly said. “So we're also inheriting a very large group of donors who are the people who supported our bid. Our bid cost $4 million, probably one of the lowest bids in history.”
The decisive moment will come at 3:30 a.m. local time on July 24, when IOC members will officially vote in Paris to award Salt Lake City the host city for the 2034 Winter Olympics.
Kelly said a live viewing party will be held that evening at the Salt Lake City and County Building in Washington Square.
Park City is planning another celebration at Utah Olympic Park on July 24, which also marks Pioneer Day.
