Two-time Olympian Luke Bodensteiner relived the excitement he experienced during the 1992 and ’94 Games as he watched hype men with microphones get attendees out of their seats, dancing and chanting, at the Tesero Cross-County Stadium in Italy during Paralympic competitions earlier this month.

But his visit was for business rather than pleasure. He’d come with a mission: to prepare Soldier Hollow Nordic Center, which hosted the cross-country skiing and biathlon competitions during the 2002 Olympics and Paralympics, for the Games’ return to Utah in 2034.

Bodensteiner, who is the general manager of the Midway venue, participated in the International Olympic Committee’s observer program, which allows future organizers a peek at the Games’ behind-the-scenes organization. 

Bodensteiner left for Val di Fiemme, Italy, on March 6 and returned March 12.

It was not his first time visiting the Tesero Cross-Country Skiing Stadium, which he frequented for competitions in his 20 years in leadership roles for U.S. Ski & Snowboard. But it was his first time participating in the observer program.

The biggest insights Bodensteiner gained from his conversations with Giovanni Plano, the general manager of Tesero Cross-Country Skiing Stadium, were around accessibility for disabled athletes and spectators.

“I think that was the one area that, in retrospect, they had wished they had done differently. There’s a short gap between the Olympics and the Paralympics, and what they discovered is they hadn’t contemplated well enough the accessibility issues,” he said. “They spent a lot of time in that 10-day gap building ramps and creating accessibility routes and bridges to get people across snow.”

Bodensteiner said Soldier Hollow is accessible for its day-to-day operations, but the Olympics and Paralympics will require additional planning.

“When you put in a lot of temporary facilities and just think through the route, for instance, that an athlete in a wheelchair has to take to get from bus drop off to the snow where they start skiing, that requires a lot of thought, actually,” he said. “They really said, ‘Build the venue for the Paralympics first, and then if there are things that you don’t want or don’t need, you can remove those and put them back for the Paralympics.’”

The Tesero Cross-Country Skiing Stadium fared better in its snowmaking. Increasing the capacity of its snowmaking system was one of several renovations the venue underwent in its $20 million overhaul in the years leading up to the Games.

Bodensteiner said Tesero and Midway have “remarkably similar” climates and face the same snowmaking challenges, particularly in March, when the Paralympics take place. That’s why Soldier Hollow will be doubling the capacity of its snowmaking system over the next five years, a project that is expected to cost nearly $7 million.

The venue is also trying a new snow preservation strategy this year: snow farming. 

“We basically made a pile of snow that’s about 100 yards long and 50 yards wide and 25 feet deep, and we’ve blanketed that with insulation,” Bodensteiner explained.

He expects about 80% of the snow will be preserved until November. If the method, popularized by ski resorts, is successful, the venue will add two or three additional snow farms.

What will help is that the competitions held at Soldier Hollow will likely take place in the morning to accommodate broadcasts in Europe, Bodensteiner explained. He said snow tends to soften after about 11 a.m. on sunny days.

Another challenge Soldier Hollow will face in 2034 is accommodating spectators alongside the trails. Bodensteiner said the International Biathlon Union is encouraging venues to get spectators close to the action during the 2034 Games.

Soldier Hollow accommodated about 20,000 spectators per day in 2002, and Bodensteiner expects 15,000 per day in 2034. Accommodating those crowds on short trails could be tricky for the venue.

“Unlike in 2002, where the longest trail that we used was the 16.7 kilometer trail, there’s much more focus now on shorter laps. And so, the longest trail we actually do in 2034 is 8.3 kilometers,” he explained.

He’s still brainstorming how to accommodate crowds alongside the trails and said the problem will be addressed closer to 2034.

Bodensteiner not only learned how to prepare Soldier Hollow for the Games, but how Wasatch County can welcome them in 2034.

He witnessed how the nearby Italian towns of Predazzo and Cavalese, of a similar population size to Midway, provided a warm welcome to tourists. The Games “didn’t shut down daily life,” but there were plenty of watch parties in the town squares, and businesses had broken out Olympic posters, flags, historic skis and images of Italian skiers. 

“I think that really helped draw people into those towns and into the shops and into the restaurants and kind of keep the party going,” Bodensteiner said. “In Midway and Heber, that was not the case in 2002. It was sort of, drive into town, take a shuttle to the venue, watch the race and then leave for Park City or for Salt Lake.”

Bodensteiner’s hope is that Wasatch County can have a warmer welcome for tourists during the 2034 Games. That’s why he participates in the Heber Valley Community Impact and Legacy Committee, which also consists of representatives from the Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation, Heber City, Midway and Wasatch County. The group initially formed as a Soldier Hollow advisory committee around six years ago but shifted focus to preparing for the 2034 Games about six months ago. 

“So far, we’ve been identifying the initiatives that the community would like to see it evolve toward in the future. And soon, we’ll start talking about how to use the Olympics to try to activate or even accelerate some of those projects,” Bodensteiner explained.

He provided the Heber Valley bypass and increased parking areas in Heber City as examples.

Executive Director of Heber Valley Tourism Dallin Koecher is also a member of the committee. He participated in the observer program during the Olympics last month and will be presenting his findings to the committee later this month. Bodensteiner will do the same.

Although Bodensteiner learned much from the observer program, the biggest delight of his trip was the performance of the U.S. cross-country skiing team. He thought that bode well for the 2034 Games.

“It’d be phenomenal for us to see the U.S. athletes perform exceptionally. They did in Italy,” he said. “I think that would bring so much to the local spectators who would be visiting here.”

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At the annual Park City Leadership Symposium on Friday, Park City Mayor Ryan Dickey set up a conversation with Sen. John Curtis by giving his thoughts about increasingly polarized U.S. politics, which he said was often focused on arguing rather than finding solutions.

“In local government, we don’t have the luxury of leading like that. … Every day we’re here to solve problems and bring people together,” Dickey said. “No one cares if the mayor is a Democrat or a Republican when they want to go to work in the morning and the streets aren’t plowed or, God forbid, if they want to get pickleball time and the tennis players are there. These are real issues. The pickleball party rises above partisan politics.”

When Curtis came onstage, Dickey asked whether the senator had observed an increase in political polarization.

Yes, he agreed, polarization has increased over the past decade, particularly due to social media.

“I could post how much we love puppies on my social media, and somebody would say, ‘See, I told you he was an idiot,’” Curtis joked. “It sadly drives a lot of the narrative in Washington, D.C.”

But he also said that polarized narrative overshadows the bipartisan problem-solving that does occur.

“If I could just literally transport all of you into Washington, D.C., into a day in my life … you would see that most Republicans and Democrats actually like each other, that we get along. We travel together. We eat together. We do things together. … In any given week, I’ll bet I hear four or five times, ‘Let’s find a bill to work on together,’” he said. “We’re kind, and we like each other’s personalities. And that, obviously, is boring, right? And it doesn’t make social media.”

Curtis pointed to the Fiscal Commission Act as an example of bipartisan collaboration. He introduced the legislation with the sponsorship of four other Republicans, four Democrats and an Independent this week. The Fiscal Commission Act would create a bipartisan commission focused on finding legislative solutions to decrease the national debt, which now exceeds $38 trillion, according to Curtis’ website.

Climate change is another way Curtis has pushed bipartisan collaboration. He founded the Conservative Climate Caucus in 2021 to address climate change from a Republican perspective.

“If you can flip climate to be a bipartisan issue, we can flip about anything. And I think that’s one of the things that I’m really proud of, is getting Republicans to actually say the word climate,” he said. “The reality of it is, look, we’re Utahns, and every Utahn, in my opinion, cares deeply about this Earth and leaving it better than we found it. Now, all of a sudden, that’s a basis for a conversation.”

He pointed to artificial intelligence as one way conversations around energy have changed in recent years. 

“Years ago, we were talking about 1, 2% growth in energy,” Curtis said. He believed that made it easy to have conversations about which power sources were best. 

Due to advances in artificial intelligence, “We’re really in a world right now where we need every electron we can get,” he said.

“And this challenges both sides of this debate,” he continued. “We’ve got the current executive branch trying to undermine wind and solar. … And some of my colleagues that have been traditionally against the fossil fuels are realizing themselves, ‘Wow. We’ve got to think about this.’”

He believes changing the narrative to focus on energy growth rather than the sources it comes from will lead the market to naturally “take control” and provide energy that is clean, reliable and affordable.

Water conservation is another issue Curtis believes is an issue that must be addressed at all levels of government and by individuals, particularly after the 2034 Olympics.

“There’s zero question in my mind that we will pull off the best Olympics in the history of the world,” Curtis said.

He said Utah must prepare for growth that may occur as a result of the 2034 Olympics. It’s something he observed after the 2002 Olympics, when people across the globe increasingly realized Colorado wasn’t the only state worth skiing in. He said that growth will create a need to address issues ranging from water conservation to transportation and infrastructure.

Wrapping up the panel, Dickey asked for advice from Curtis, who was Provo mayor from 2010 to 2017, about how to approach his first term as Park City mayor.

Firstly, Curtis recommended adapting the format of town hall meetings. When he was Provo mayor, he allowed public commenters to use their allotted time to meet with him one-on-one instead of speaking in front of a crowd. 

“It totally changed the dynamic of the information I was getting back,” he said.

Secondly, Curtis relayed something he’d heard recently from Brett Hart, the president of United Airlines — a leader is responsible for culture. He said the same is true of a mayor. Whether it’s how police officers treat residents or whether a pesky pothole gets filled, the mayor takes responsibility for everything that happens in their municipality. Similarly, the mayor is responsible for ensuring every resident feels heard.

Finally, Curtis told Dickey to enjoy it. 

“I’m now eight years away from being mayor. Nobody in Provo cares about what the tax rates were when I was mayor. You know what they care about? They will tell stories of the day you showed up at the elementary school in your pajamas to read stories to the kids,” he said. 

Dickey’s final question for Curtis was whether he had any advice about how to address Park City’s parking woes. Dickey said Curtis was spotted on Main Street during Halloween in a past year, dressed as SpongeBob Squarepants, rushing to his car, which was seconds away from being towed. Sadly, Dickey did not provide any photo evidence of Curtis dressed as the cartoon sea sponge. 

Curtis didn’t have any specific advice about parking, but urged Dickey to “figure it out.”

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As he stayed in Auronzo di Cadore, Italy, during the Milano Cortina Winter Games, Dallin Koecher, the executive director of Heber Valley Tourism, Economic Development and Chamber of Commerce, was given a glimpse of how the Heber Valley had let the opportunities of the Olympics pass it by during the 2002 Olympics. 

Despite being less than an hour’s drive from the Games territory of Cortina d’Ampezzo, Koecher said that “you would have no idea the Olympics were happening” while visiting the municipality of about 3,300 people.

“There was no major effort to be like, ‘Hey, it’s the Olympics. Let’s stay open later. Let’s do this. Let’s kind of maximize on this.’ It was just business as usual, or no business as usual, as it turned out to be,” Koecher said about Auronzo di Cadore.

During the 2002 Olympics, Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway hosted the biathlon and cross-country skiing competitions. But, as Koecher put it, “the community just let people come and go,” without reaping the reward of an influx of tourists to Wasatch County. 

With Soldier Hollow hosting those same competitions during the 2034 Games, Koecher and other Wasatch County representatives are eager not to make the same mistake.

“From a community standpoint, we want to make sure that when visitors come to the Heber Valley, they know that this is an Olympic destination, not just a sleepy little town,” he said.

That’s why Koecher participated in the International Olympic Committee’s Observer Program with other statewide representatives invited to study how communities and venues in and around Cortina d’Ampezzo adapted to the Olympics.

Koecher left for Italy on Feb. 7 and returned Tuesday. He was the only Wasatch County representative to participate in the observer program. Koecher visited Cortina d’Ampezzo instead of Milan, so he could observe the biathlon competition, and watched the women’s 7.5-kilometer sprint at the Antholz-Anterselva Biathlon Arena on Feb. 14.

“I think in Europe, they look at cross-country skiing and Nordic events like we look at college football,” Koecher said with a laugh. “Just massive.”

Able to accommodate up to 19,000 spectators, the arena had the highest spectator capacity of any venue in the Milano Cortina Winter Games. Soldier Hollow accommodated about 20,000 people per day over 16 days of the 2002 Games, according to Luke Bodensteiner, the venue’s general manager.

Bodensteiner expects about 15,000 people per day in 2034, a prospect that excited Koecher. This could be a chance for visitors to shop for trinkets, dine, explore the area and enjoy Heber City’s Main Street Park. The city is currently redesigning the park to support increased event programming, with the intention of completing the makeover by the 2034 Games.

Although Koecher said the Antholz-Anterselva Biathlon Arena had all the grandeur of a football stadium, he thought that Soldier Hollow had the venue beat in offering a good view of the competition for spectators. 

“In Italy, we’re in the stands, and you can basically see the shooting range and the penalty track and the start and finish line, which are all great and really exciting. But as soon as they leave the stadium, you don’t see them until they come back,” he said, “Whereas at Soldier Hollow, you have the opportunity to watch without having to be out there. … You can watch these skiers through the trails and stuff from the spectator stands.”

However, both venues face a similar challenge of only having “one road in, one road out,” Koecher said.

He explained that the Olympic organizers dealt with that problem in Italy by temporarily operating shuttles during the Games. He said that could be a viable solution in the Heber Valley, but the experience of being stuck on buses for much of his trip led him to dream up an additional idea: a Heber Valley Railroad train route traveling between Heber City, Midway and Deer Valley East Village.

“(It) would be a solution for the Games, but also create a long-term legacy piece that would benefit our community, Soldier Hollow, the railroad, ongoing, not just for the four weeks of the Olympic and Paralympic Games,” Koecher said. 

He said using the railroad and shuttles would allow people to park in areas like Southfield Park or Deer Creek High School, alleviating traffic and parking congestion in hotspots like Soldier Hollow.

While the biathlon competition was a highlight, the bulk of Koecher’s trip was spent traveling to other Games venues and talking with International Olympic Committee members, volunteers and paid staff about the challenges and opportunities posed by the Olympics.

What stuck out to Koecher most was the lack of lodging dedicated to non-local volunteers.

“Some of the volunteers said that it was just up to them. ‘OK, go find your housing and figure it out yourself.’ So, they turned to Facebook groups. They turned to social media to find housing,” he said. 

He said Utah has the opportunity to do a “better job” of filling that need, perhaps by organizing an online, statewide system that would match people willing to open their homes to volunteers during the Games.

Even if the practice isn’t adopted in such an official capacity, Koecher is hopeful that it can be picked up in the Heber Valley.

“It’s really kind of like hosting a foreign exchange student for only a couple of weeks,” he said. “That’s a really neat way to, one, experience a new culture by having somebody in your home, but also share our culture.”

As for opportunities, he said broadcasting was a big one.

“The biathlon and cross-country events are hugely popular in Europe. So when they are on TV, they’re going to want their new valley-wide shots, maybe even talk a little about the community as the broadcasters are talking about the events,” he said. “There’s an opportunity for us to use this as a marketing tool, or at least a way to showcase our community to the world.”

Koecher was unable to meet Cortina d’Ampezzo Mayor Gianluca Lorenzi with the rest of his group because the meeting took place on Koecher’s date of departure. 

He said that by the time the meeting was set up, he had already planned to fly home early to minimize the cost of the trip, which was about $4,000 and paid for by Heber Valley Tourism’s budget. The bulk of that budget is funded by Wasatch County Transient Room Tax revenue.

Although Koecher was unable to meet Lorenzi, he asked members of the group to share notes about what they’d learned from their conversation with him.

Koecher said being “boots on the ground” during the observer program was an insightful experience he encouraged other Wasatch County representatives to participate in during the Los Angeles 2028 Summer Games and the French Alps 2030 Winter Games. 

Heber City Mayor Heidi Franco has indicated that she is interested in participating in the program during either of those Games. She was supposed to attend this year in Koecher’s place but had to decline when her grandson was born. 

Bodensteiner will be participating in the observer program during the Paralympic Games in Val di Fiemme, Italy, from March 6 to 11. 

Koecher will present findings from his trip to the Heber Valley Community Impact and Legacy Committee — a group made up of representatives from Soldier Hollow, the Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation, Heber City, Midway and Wasatch County — sometime next month.

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Dallin Koecher, executive director of Heber Valley Tourism, Economic Development and Chamber of Commerce, will be attending the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Games to gather information that could help Wasatch County prepare for the Utah 2034 Olympics. 

Koecher is participating in the International Olympic Committee’s observer program, which gives future hosts of the Games a chance to plan by watching event organizers behind the scenes. 

When Koecher returns, he will present his findings to fellow members of the Heber Valley Community Impact and Legacy Committee, which is made up of representatives from Soldier Hollow Nordic Center, the Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation and Heber City, Midway and Wasatch County.

Heber City Mayor Heidi Franco was supposed to attend, but personal responsibility took priority when her grandson was born. She is planning on attending the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Summer Games or the French Alps 2030 Olympic Winter Games.

The Utah 2034 organizing committee invited several Wasatch County officials to join the program last autumn, with the expectation that they would pay their own way.

Koecher’s trip is funded through Heber Valley Tourism’s budget, which is primarily supported by revenue from Wasatch County’s 4.5% transient room tax. He estimated that his trip, including flights, food and lodgings, will cost around $4,000.

He “hemmed and hawed for a little bit” about whether the expense was worth the reward but ultimately decided it was. The Heber Valley Tourism board agreed.

Koecher will be departing for Italy on Wednesday and returning on Feb. 17. 

The group Koecher is in is the only one of four traveling to Cortina d’Ampezzo instead of Milan, chosen as his home base because of its proximity to the Antholz-Anterselva Biathlon Arena. 

Soldier Hollow in Midway hosted the biathlon and cross-country skiing competitions during the 2002 games and will host them again in 2034. 

Koecher will bring observations of how the biathlon event and stadium are handled back to leadership from Soldier Hollow. The venue’s general manager, Luke Bodensteiner, will similarly be participating in the Observer Program March 6-11 at the Paralympic Games in Val di Fiemme to study factors like venue security and accessibility.

Koecher will also be shadowing people working at the games.

“One thing I’m going to be doing is a day in the life of the workforce member. How does it work? How do the volunteers work? How does the paid staff work?” he said.

The focus of Koecher’s group is mountain operations and logistics, security and how various venues organize their events for athletes, the public and the media.

Koecher said he may also be allowed to speak with his Cortina d’Ampezzo counterparts, be it the mayor or representatives of the town’s tourism and economic development board.

Wasatch County stakeholders’ hope for the 2034 Games is that the Heber Valley sees economic spillover from observers visiting Soldier Hollow instead of being passed by like during the 2002 Olympics.

As Bodensteiner put it, “Everybody got bussed in from some other town, watched the competition and never really came to town, just drove right through it.”

This next time around, Koecher envisions watch parties, cultural exchange and bustling businesses and restaurants through the entirety of the Olympics and Paralympics.

Koecher’s trip will be his first in-person Olympics since the 2002 Games. He was 17 at the time and lived in Bountiful.

The opening ceremony is forever etched in his mind, from hearing the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sing “The Star-Spangled Banner” to seeing an American flag recovered from ground zero of the Sept. 11 attacks.

But a much simpler sentiment stuck with Koecher, too.

“It was pretty cool to see how Utah opened its arms to the world,” Koecher said. 

He hopes the Heber Valley can do the same in 2034.

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When four-time Paralympic alpine skier Danelle Umstead talks about the power of sport, she speaks from her lived experience in finding community through isolation and hardship.

“Skiing gave me purpose and independence when I was losing my sight,” said Umstead, who is visually impaired and competed with her husband as her guide across four Paralympic Games. “It gave me community when I felt isolated, and it taught me that sometimes the biggest barriers aren’t the ones on the mountain. They’re the ones in our minds and in society.”

This need for community became the spark for the Sisters in Sports Foundation, which Umstead launched in 2020 to ensure that women and girls with disabilities have a place to belong, thrive and lead. 

For Umstead, skiing represented a space she could turn to when she felt isolated by vision loss. Now, she is giving a platform to a generation of girls with disabilities, aiming to help them find that same sense of belonging and grow into leaders who will lift others in turn.

“We hope that this is a movement. If we start now, by the time 2034 comes, we can really rally the Paralympic side of things and show what we’ve accomplished together here as a community and as Sisters in Sports,” said Umstead. 

On Saturday, the foundation is hosting Bella Notte, a fundraising gala named in the spirit of the 2026 Milano Cortina Games at the Grand Hyatt Deer Valley. The evening brings together Olympians, Paralympians and community members for a celebration of sport and resilience, raising funds to sustain and expand Sisters in Sports’ impact. 

With a fundraising goal of $250,000, the event will feature a silent auction, appearances from Olympians including Picabo Street, Erin Jackson and Brittany Bowe alongside Sisters in Sports athletes.

Olympian Shannon Bahrke will host the evening, and Bella Notte will give the community a chance to meet the young women whose futures the foundation is helping to shape.

“This is more than just a fundraiser,” said Umstead. “It’s about rallying together as a community and showing these women and girls that they belong.”

Sisters in Sports was born from the gaps Umstead felt in her own support system as an athlete.

“I knew there was something that really needed to change for women in sports, and that is community. Having a community is really important. That’s what sports are all about, right? It teaches you to collaborate and encourage and empower each other, and it wasn’t there for women,” said Umstead.

When Umstead founded Sisters in Sports, she built it around two priorities: mental wellness and storytelling. Through the foundation’s programs, athletes gain access to psychologists and wellness specialists offering one-on-one sessions, group workshops and curriculum designed to strengthen mental health long before an athlete reaches the elite level.

“I thought that was really lacking in sports,” Umstead said. “The only way you’d get that mental health support was if you made the national team. That leaves out quite a bit of people who are trying to either get involved in sport or who live with a disability and want to excel in life. It was really important to me to have a healthy mind just as much as a healthy body.”

Athletes also work with coaches to learn how to tell their stories in a way that feels true to their experience, and prepares them to advocate confidently with coaches, sponsors and employers. 

“We want to help women tell their story in their own authentic way, so they could really hold themselves as a strong disabled woman. And that was really, really important to me,” said Umstead. 

Despite launching during the coronavirus pandemic, Sisters in Sports has now supported more than 50 athletes, funding training, travel and equipment while also fostering a culture of mentorship.

Paralympians, including co-founders Oksana Masters and Kendall Gretsch, lead roundtables on topics from nutrition and social media branding to resilience and leadership. The round tables are about offering advice and connection, but also a way to meet and find community among other women with disabilities, regardless of level or discipline. 

Umstead explained that while she often found herself informally mentoring teammates during her career, what was missing in women’s sports, especially for athletes with disabilities, was a structured, lasting community to lean on. Through roundtables and the foundation’s Big SIS program, where experienced athletes step in as mentors to newer members, Sisters in Sports is working to create a lasting outlet for community and belonging.

“Once you’re a part of sisters in sports, it’s something you stay with forever. We continue to rally for you and your needs and help you in wherever your path is going,” said Umstead. “Once a sister, always a sister. We really want them to know they have a community that they can rely on, and we hope they’ll bring up the next generation of sisters too.”

Guests at Saturday night’s Bella Notte will be able to bid in the public silent auction featuring experiences and items, including local wine tastings, resort stays and U.S. Ski Team merch. 

The silent auction also offers a rare piece of alpine history, featuring Mikaela Shiffrin’s autographed custom helmet from her 2022-23 World Cup season. Shiffrin surpassed Ingemar Stenmark’s all-time World Cup victories record while wearing the helmet, earning the title of the greatest skier of all time. 

The gala will also feature an Olympic-style pin trading, where each guest receives a lanyard and collectible pins to swap throughout the reception. Inspired by traditions from the Games, the activity is designed to spark connections among attendees while nodding toward both Milano Cortina 2026 and the 2034 Games in Utah.

Umstead envisions Sisters in Sports becoming a household name by the Winter Olympics, when the Paralympic Games come to town. The foundation recently strengthened its leadership with new board members Beth Armstrong, Gil Mandelzis and Steve Scruton, joining an existing board that includes Susan Cattozzo and Jeannie Goldstein. 

“By the time 2034 comes around, I would love for Sisters in Sports to be a staple — for it to be a name that everybody knows. And for the movement of the Paralympics, maybe to know that we were a part of it, even if it’s a small part, we all have to give to make it better in our communities and for our athletes.”

Bella Notte begins at 6:30 p.m. with the VIP reception, followed by the general reception at 7:30 p.m. and dinner at 8 p.m. on Saturday. Tickets start at $250 with sponsorship opportunities also available starting at $2,500. Visit tinyurl.com/4j89ypce for details.

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The Anti-Gala garnered community support for the Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation last week with its annual fundraiser, which supports the foundation’s scholarships and Healthy Communities program.

Between fire pit reunions and inner tubing down the ski jumps, supporters at the ninth annual Anti-Gala on Aug. 7 reflected on the foundation and the Utah Olympic Park as a place they see as both a springboard for Olympic dreams and an open playground where local kids can discover sports that can shape their futures.

“It’s just part of the community, it’s wonderful,” said Vanessa Conabee, a longtime local and former Nordic ski coach at Soldier Hollow. “They do so much for the town, too. The accessibility for people is insane. My kids grew up on the Nordic course.”

Conabee explained that the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center, one of the foundation’s three local facilities, has been a staple of her family’s life for years. For Conabee, the foundation is a rare and valuable community organization for a town where skiing can otherwise be prohibitively expensive.

“Think about what you have to do today to go train at Park City Mountain or Snowbird. It’s very difficult. It’s very hard. And this gives a lot more access to training day and night. It’s great, especially since they’ve opened up the West Hill. That is huge,” said Stephen Balog, an alpine racer in the masters program, who trains weekly at the park.

The Balogs live in Sandy but make the trip to the Utah Olympic Park all year to train. As a masters racer, Stephen Balog said one of the highlights is sharing the hill with national teams and university athletes from around the world. The experience made the park a space where young and old athletes could see and learn from the best in the world on their local hill. 

“When the French alpine team was here, Stephen just loved watching them, because they’re watching their form and technique. It’s not only fun for the kids to see stuff like that, but also old folks love it,” said Kimberly, Stephen’s wife.

Greg Schmidt bears no personal connection to the facilities or the sports they support. But for him, the foundation is a community gathering place for friendship and opportunity. 

“It’s great to support an amazing opportunity for kids to train and young people to get outside. It’s part of Park City,” said Schmidt. “We just come here to join our friends and spend some time together. It’s a worthy cause and worthy of being supported.”

Dr. Stuart Willick is a sports medicine physician at the University of Utah Health and a veteran attendee of the annual event. Willick has seen these venues from multiple angles, he said, as a parent, a doctor and a sports administrator.

“The Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation is an extraordinary group that does great things for us. The three venues under the umbrella of the Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation are truly world-class facilities. The Olympic and Paralympic movement is an extraordinary worldwide movement that promotes not just elite sport, but physical activity, health and wellness and recreation for everybody, and it’s great to be a part of it,” said Willick.

Willick’s ties to the Olympic movement run through every part of his life. His kids have trained at the park, and he’s worked the sidelines of countless events, including 10 Olympic and Paralympic Games as a physician, researcher and administrator. For him, the foundation is the backbone that keeps the Olympic spirit thriving long after the Games have moved on.

“Having the Games come to your town, which we did in 2002, is an experience like no other, and so many people are so excited about having the Games come back; it’s going to be phenomenal,” Willick said. “The Olympic and Paralympic movements are good for all. To see countries like Israel, Iran, Iraq march together, compete together and socialize together in the village is just so important.”

For Susan Ring, her connection to the Utah Olympic Park also started with her love of the Olympic Games. She arrived at the height of the 2002 Games preparations after moving to Park City in 1999, and her husband served as the venue manager for Soldier Hollow. 

“For the next Olympic Games, we’ll be volunteers because we’ll be too old to do anything else,” she joked. 

In the years since, Ring said she’s seen firsthand how those facilities continue to shape the region by boosting tourism, giving local kids access to world-class training grounds and offering non-athletes the chance to try Olympic sports. 

“They are very, very important, absolutely. For tourism, as well as for the community itself, leading people to the Olympics, and also for people who are not even into that, they all have the opportunity to try everything out,” said Ring.

After ziplining, ski jump descents and food trucks, the crowds gathered around the stage to hear from the evening’s speakers, Olympians Shannon Bahrke and Chris Mazdzer, and a lineup of local athletes on whom the foundation has had a profound and lasting impact. 

In the spirit of trying everything, local skiers Alli and Lauren Macuga recalled their childhood years spent at the Utah Olympic Park with the freedom to play, learn, and try any sport they chose. 

Today, Lauren is a member of the U.S. Alpine Ski Team and Alli competes on the U.S. Moguls Team. Both credit their rise to the opportunities they had growing up in a town where world-class training venues doubled as a community playground.

“Almost every day,  growing up, all four of us would come here. Our parents would just kind of throw us all in the pool and say, “All right, go do some tricks.” It was amazing. It’s really fabulous. It’s made for us,” said Lauren.

Alli remembered trying nearly every winter sport possible before narrowing her focus to moguls, the event she felt combined almost every one of them. 

“So I tried a lot of sports growing up. I had to go back and remember all of them, and it was about 10 winter sports. At the Utah Olympic Park, I tried slopestyle, I tried half pipe, aerials, big air moguls, obviously, even ski jumping and racing and ski cross. I tried everything. It was so fun to be able to have that opportunity, and so cool to be able to say that now,” said Alli.

Growing up just miles from the Utah Olympic Oval, national speed skater Casey Dawson first learned the sport through local development programs. Dawson now holds the world record in team pursuit and a bronze medal from the 2022 Winter Games. 

Dawson’s path embodies both the foundation’s mission and Park City’s Olympic legacy, where, for him, access to world-class venues was able to turn childhood curiosity into elite achievement.

“I’m a product of Park City, pretty much,” said Dawson. “The Olympics are coming up fast, and I think having these events, having visibility, is just awesome. My goal is to inspire the next generation, keep speed skating on the map, and make something of this community.”

Following in the footsteps of skaters like Dawson is Ezra Mangum, a young speed skater and Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation athlete already setting his sights on the 2034 Games. 

“The speed skaters lit a fire in my heart, and that fire was telling me to do it and be positive,” he said. “The skaters inspired me, so I started, and now I try to inspire people and light a fire in their hearts, too. Remember what makes you special!”

With Olympic dreams to meet, the Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation CEO Colin Hilton said the funding and energy that will come with hosting the Olympics again will directly translate into more opportunities for youth programs, athlete development and community recreation.

“It was about a year ago we got awarded the Games to come back in 2034. How does that impact us? More interest, more support, more ability to have legacy impact, and more ability to help our youth engage in sport, which has so much value to build life lessons like setting goals, building confidence,” said Hilton. 

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