July 2024 Newsmaker Breakfast: Estimated Economic Impacts of the 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Utah

On July 10, the Gardner Institute hosted its monthly Newsmaker Breakfast, which focused on the estimated economic impacts of the 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in Utah. We are joined today by Salt Lake City-Utah Committee and Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation members who discussed the results of a new Institute report on the topic and what the data mean ahead of the 2034 Games.

On July 24, the International Olympic Committee will vote on the 2034 Winter Olympic Games host city. Both the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee and Salt Lake City-Utah Committee for the Games are confident Salt Lake City, Utah, will be chosen to host the games for a second time. Ahead of the vote, the Gardner Institute has worked with the organizing committee to determine the potential economic and fiscal impacts of hosting the event, which includes direct expenditures and additional economic activity, jobs, and revenue generated in the state.

Our panelists were Catherine Raney Norman, Chair of Salt Lake City-Utah Olympic Committee and four-time Olympic speed skater; Brett Hopkins, COO/CFO of the Salt Lake City-Utah Olympic Committee; Colin Hilton, President and CEO of the Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation; and John Downen, Senior Research Fellow at the Gardner Institute.

Gardner Institute director Natalie Gochnour moderated the discussion.