International Olympics leader sees Utah transforming ahead of the 2034 Winter Games

International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach was all smiles as he greeted reporters gathered at the Salt Lake City International Airport’s Hoberman Arch on Friday.
Making his first visit to Utah since the 2002 Winter Games, Bach declared, “It’s great to be back.”
But he didn’t recognize the airport, which has undergone a $5.1 billion transformation, including the installation along the exit road of the iconic arch used on the 2002 medals plaza stage. The sign on the arch was recently updated to reflect Utah being awarded the 2034 Winter Games by the IOC on July 24.
The airport’s “architecture, the art inside, fantastic,” said the German Olympic champion fencer who will step down next year as IOC president after leading the Switzerland-based organization since 2013. “I recognized the beautiful landscape but the airport is completely new and exciting to see.”
Later Friday, Bach made a similar observation about the significantly expanded University of Utah Rice-Eccles Stadium, the site of the Olympic and Paralympic Opening and Closing Ceremonies more than two decades ago. The stadium is set to hold the extravaganzas that begin and end the Games again in 2034.
Bach, who has two packed days of meetings and venue tours during his time in Utah, made a point of recognizing Fraser Bullock, the president and CEO of the Salt Lake City-Utah Committee for the Games who also served as the chief operating officer of the 2002 Games.
Calling Bullock “our good friend,” the IOC president told reporters, “he made it in 2002 and promises to make it in ‘34 again.” When Bullock noted Bach had served on the IOC commission that evaluated Utah’s 2002 bid and “got everything started,” Bach jokingly reminded him, “I was even the chair. So I was here before you.”
Before going to the U., Bach heard Salt Lake City’s downtown revitalization plans presented by Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith, also now the owner of Utah’s new National Hockey League team. Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall also joined in the presentation at the Delta Center, another Games venue.
A lunch served family style at a Grand America Hotel restaurant introduced Bach to the other mayors of venue communities.
By mid-afternoon, Bach and the dozen or so IOC officials traveling with him arrived at the U., where members of the news media trailed behind him as guides pointed out the climbing wall, sports courts, weight rooms and other features of the George S. Eccles Student Life Center before heading to the Kahlert Village student housing that opened in 2020.
The facility, a short walk away from the student center, was envisioned as a place for Olympic athletes to call home during the Games, Sean Grube, the U.’s associate vice president for housing and residential education said, assuring Bach that more new student housing is coming to the campus that housed the Athlete Village in 2002.
“We’re in a robust building phase,” Grube said, with a goal of adding 5,000 new beds.
Bach made a point of checking out a display of hot sauces in the dorm’s food court, noting he’d tried one named “Beyond Insane” Thursday at the Team USA training center in Colorado Springs during a visit to the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee headquarters. He also requested espressos for himself and some of the IOC delegation, pronouncing the coffee “excellent.”
But what Bach really liked was seeing how much more the U. could offer athletes a decade from now.
“For the athletes, it’s perfect,” he said of having such extensive training facilities within the secure perimeter of what would be the 2034 Athlete Village so Olympians wouldn’t have to leave to prepare for competition. And the food court is “state of the art,” Bach added. “It’s a fantastic campus, when you see all the opportunities” for athletes.
Bullock said what he really wants Bach to see in Utah are the young athletes who weren’t around when the state last hosted a Games more than two decades ago. “One of the things we know about President Bach, he loves the athletes, he loves the youth and the up-and-coming future Olympians and Paralympians. That’s probably the most important element.”
As the group headed to the arch for a photo opportunity, Bach replied, “It is.”
At the U.’s Rice-Eccles Stadium, the IOC president joined a panel of young athletes who are also studying on campus. When asked for his advice on succeeding as an athlete and beyond, Bach didn’t hesitate. “Never give up,” he said, not only as an athlete, “but in life.”
Speedskater Ethan Cepuran, who wore his bronze medal from the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing, told Bach he’s “trying my best every day” to be chosen to compete in 2026, when the Olympics will be held in Milan-Cortina, Italy. Cepuran, who is from Chicago but trains in Utah, praised his adopted state’s sports culture as unique.
“It’s just a world class state to train in,” he said, describing how seeing reminders of the 2002 Olympics “really hits you.”
On Saturday, Bach will head to the Utah Olympic Oval in Kearns and the Utah Olympic Park near Park City, as part of what he anticipates will “be a great mixture of looking back to the wonderful Games of 2002 and then looking forward to even more wonderful Games in ‘34.” He’ll also attend the U.’s homecoming football game.
There’s work being done behind the scenes, too.
Christophe Dubi, the IOC’s Olympic Games executive director, told the Deseret News there will be discussions about the transition from bidding to organizing a Games. While the bid committee’s name is expected to be retained, the structure and membership has yet to be announced.
“What we want to discuss now are the ambitions for the next few months and plan the work ahead. So we’re happy that we could add the 2034 here and now it’s all about working together, in collaboration. So yes, this is what we’re going to discuss,” Dubi said. “First actions.”
Already, Bach has addressed the United Nations General Assembly in New York City and met with the USOPC in Colorado Springs during what may be his final swing through the United States as the head of the IOC. He’s scheduled to spend time in Los Angeles, the host of the 2028 Summer Games, before leaving the country.