It's been a long held dream in Salt Lake to host the Winter
Olympics. In fact, locals have been preparing for the Winter
Games for over 30 years. Today you can see the fruits of their
labor, even if you won't be here during the actual games next
winter. All of the venues and facilities are in place and some
are even open to the public to try out. Utah Olympic Park offers
ski-jumping workshops and bobsled and luge rides, and you can
ice skate and ski in the same places as the athletes.
As the excitement builds to the
opening ceremonies on February 8, 2002, Utah is definitely the
place to be, and now is definitely the time to visit. The world
will be checking out all Utah has to offer February 8 - 24,
2002, while watching televised events. You can visit sooner and
check things out in person, minus the crowds, expensive tickets
and long lines.
Downtown Salt Lake City is home
to the Delta Center, where figure skating events will take
place. Tours are available by calling (801) 325-2000. On the
University of Utah campus, Rice-Eccles Stadium will be the site
of the Olympic opening and closing ceremonies. The stadium is
undergoing renovation, and its capacity will double in size by
the time the Olympics are here.
Before leaving downtown, take a
walk through the Salt Palace Convention Center. It's an
impressive building in its own right, and will handle the
100,000 journalists in town to cover the games next year.
Not far from Salt Lake City,
you'll find Utah Olympic Park, which will be the site of the
bobsled, luge, ski jumping and nordic combined events. The Park
is also where the U.S. Freestyle and Nordic teams train.
A bit further drive and you'll
hit Park City. Olympic events will be held at two of its three
world-class ski resorts. Deer Valley Resort and Park City
Mountain Resort will host giant slalom, snowboarding, slalom and
freestyle events.
Another ski resort a short drive
from Salt Lake City, Snowbasin, will host the Olympic Downhill,
Super G, Combined and Paralympic events.
For more information about the
Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Winter Games, visit the official
web site or call 801-212-2002.
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