Utah
Most Americans don’t know Utah is hosting another Olympics. But they have thoughts about the 2034 Winter Games name
As Italy’s Milan Cortina Olympics came to a close Sunday with a ceremonial hand off to the French Alps as the site of the next Winter Games in four years, everyone was looking ahead to Utah hosting in 2034, right?
Maybe not.
Sure, a new Deseret News-Hinckley Institute of Politics poll found 88% of Utahns know their state is where the “next next” Winter Games will be held eight years from now, a decision made by the International Olympic Committee in July 2024.
But a national poll for the Salt Lake City-based newspaper and the University of Utah institute showed pretty much the opposite. Nearly three-quarters of Americans, 72%, said they weren’t aware that Utah had been selected to host the 2034 Winter Games.
Both polls were conducted by Morning Consult, which polled 769 registered voters in Utah Feb. 11-14 and 2,002 registered voters nationwide Feb. 10-13. The Utah poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4% and the national poll, plus or minus 2%.
The lack of national awareness doesn’t seem to worry the leader of Utah’s Winter Games.
“It’s understandable,” said Fraser Bullock, president and executive chair of the Organizing Committee for the 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, given that the state’s second hosting gig is so far away.
“Over time, we will close the gap on that number and get to a majority,” he said. “Particularly after the French Alps Games, when we’re the next Games, we should see a steady rise over the years.”
Bullock said Utah also can expect “a fair amount of attention” when Los Angeles holds the 2028 Summer Games as the next Olympics and Paralympics for athletes with disabilities being held in the United States.
Utah won’t be able to start selling sponsorships and making other moves in the marketplace until after the LA Games. That’s also when NBC, which holds the U.S. broadcast rights to the Olympics through 2036, is likely to start promoting Utah’s Winter Games.
Building national recognition will take time, said Bullock, who served as chief operating officer for the 2002 Winter Games in Utah. But just how organizers will try to raise the state’s profile as the host of the 2034 Games is yet to be determined.
“Let me put it this way, we’re planning to plan that,” Bullock said. “We know its something we need to do.”
Recognition of Utah at the Milan Cortina Olympics
Utah’s still-small organizing committee did have a presence at Italy’s 2026 Winter Games, including their first formal presentation to the IOC and a news conference where many questions from the international news media were about U.S. President Donald Trump.
Even so, there wasn’t much talk in Milan about the 2034 host, said Robert Livingstone, producer of GamesBids.com, a Toronto-based website that follows the competition to host future Olympics and Paralympics.
“More people were aware of Switzerland (bidding) for 2038 than that Utah had won for 2034,” Livingstone said. “People were talking French Alps and they were like, ‘Who’s after that … oh, right, Switzerland.’ I heard that a number of times.”
He said in conversations about future Winter Games, people were focused on Switzerland, which was granted a unique status as the sole bidder for 2038 by the IOC, and would “just skip over Utah because they haven’t heard anything about Utah.”
And while the French Alps had the chance to showcase the 2030 Winter Games during Sunday’s Closing Ceremonies in an ancient Roman amphitheater in Verona, the Utah Games won’t have the opportunity to do the same until the end of France’s Olympics four years from now.
One of the few hints that an American city was the site of an upcoming Winter Games came during the Feb. 6 Opening Ceremonies, when Team USA marched third from last in the Parade of Nations, ahead of athletes from France and then Italy, to signify the order of future hosts.
That same order was in place for each country’s flag bearers during the Closing Ceremonies.
Matthew Burbank, a University of Utah political science professor who’s authored two books about the Olympics, said Utah organizers were in effect limited in what they could do in Italy to promote the 2034 Games.
“I don’t think it was the time and place,” he said, noting the IOC’s “script” for future hosts calls for them to “wait your turn, stand in line, do what you’re supposed to do, show up at our meetings … but don’t call undue attention to yourself.”
The professor wasn’t surprised that Utah’s status isn’t widely known nationwide.
The Winter Games already attracts less attention than the much larger Summer Games that feature more popular sports, Burbank said. So with Los Angeles hosting those in 2028, he said if Americans “are thinking about the Olympics at all, that’s what they’re thinking.”
That’s no doubt the case globally, as well, Burbank said.
“I don’t think most people could name the French Alps as the next Winter Olympics after Milan. So with the one after that, it gets even farther away,” he said, although there’s a possibility that “because Salt Lake has held the Games before, there might be some recognition of that.”
Should 2034 be the Utah Games? Or the Salt Lake City Games?
When attention does shift to 2034, it will be on what’s been renamed the Utah Games.
In 2002, it was Salt Lake City that hosted because the IOC only awarded Games to a city. Now, cities, regions or countries can host, even joining up — as the cities of Milan and Cortina did this year.
Polling found that Utahns are split over what to call the 2034 Olympics, with 47% backing the organizing committee’s announcement late last year that they would be the Utah Games, and 32% behind the Salt Lake City Games name. Another 21% didn’t know which they preferred.
Nationally, the poll results were more clear-cut, with 50% saying the 2034 Olympics should be called the Salt Lake City Games and only 14% supporting the Utah Games name. Those who didn’t know was higher than in Utah, at 36%.
The 2034 Games organizers believe Utahns and the rest of the country will come to accept the switch from the Salt Lake City-Utah tag used throughout the Olympic bid process, which lasted more than a decade.
“The change is fairly recent and it will take some time for people to become familiar with that and accustomed to it,” Bullock said. “It will evolve over time. But remember this is a transition period where we can’t do a full launch of a brand until after the LA Games.”
Announced just before last Thanksgiving along with a new and controversial logo at the unveiling of a massive new installation at the Salt Lake City International Airport, the new “Utah 2034″ name is here to stay even though a different logo is expected in 2029.
“The name element is established,” Bullock said, promising that the 2034 Games will “have a much more comprehensive identity after the LA Games,” thanks to the ability to establish a stronger brand.
That may be a little easier in Utah, where unlike the rest of the country, the population is already overwhelmingly aware that the state is hosting in 2034. Bullock is convinced all Utahns will eventually know they’re going to welcome the world again.
“I’m thrilled that it’s 88%,” he said. “We’ll continue to spread our message, so we’ll get the other 12% that aren’t aware the Games are coming. We’re excited our citizens of Utah are paying attention to our Olympic and Paralympic future.”
What Utah organizers did in Italy during the Olympics
For Bullock, the Milan Cortina Games weren’t about increasing awareness for 2034.
He and the more than 100 other Utahns, including Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, who traveled to Italy for the Olympics largely stayed behind the scenes to get a firsthand look at putting on a Winter Games.
“It’s not our turn on the stage. We respect very much that it’s Milano Cortina’s time to shine in front of the world, as they are doing a great job,” Bullock said. “And that the baton will be handed to the French Alps.”
That meant long days of meetings about topics like technology and hospitality as well as participating in the IOC’s observer program that provides access to the back-of-the-house at Games venues as well as to operations, security, transportation and other functions.
All of it was “incredibly valuable,” Bullock said. “It’s always enjoyable to see the fulfillment of the dreams of a host … how things come together, how proud they are of the work that they’re doing, how they’re welcoming the world in their unique way, reflecting their people and their culture.”
That will happen for Utah 2034, too, he said.
“We’re just biding our time,” Bullock said. “Because we know our time will come.”
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah athletics is making a notable change to the Huntsman Center gameday setup, but the move is about more than where the team sits.
The Runnin’ Utes are moving the team bench from the east side of the Jon M. Huntsman Center to the west side, returning the bench to the side it occupied during the Rick Majerus era. The change will also move the MUSS and band from the west side to the east side.
The shift is part of a larger effort by Utah Athletics to improve the student-section experience, create a more consistent setup inside the Huntsman Center and better connect the arena to the university’s growing College Town Magic initiative.
Enhancing The MUSS And Fan Experience
Nowlin said the primary motivation behind the change is improving the MUSS and the overall fan experience.
“The reason we’re doing this is we want to enhance the MUSS,” Utah’s Deputy Athletics Director & Chief Revenue Officer, Patrick Nowlin said. “As an ongoing effort, we’ve been working on for the past two years, how do we enhance the fan experience?”
One issue Utah identified was that the MUSS had been located in different areas for different events. Moving the student section and band to the east side gives the department a more consistent location to build around.
“We wanted to create a better fan experience,” Nowlin said. “We wanted to be able to have one spot that we can build on, which means we can brand. We can enhance everything about it.”
The move also ties directly into College Town Magic. Nowlin said the area around the Huntsman Center will include more than 2,900 total beds, including more than 1,400 new beds, giving students a direct path from nearby housing to the student-section entrance.
“There’s over 2,900 new beds that are right there, which will be right at the branded entrance, right where the student section is,” Nowlin said. “They don’t have to go far at all. So it’s just a walk straight down from the dorm, right in the door.”
And according to Utah’s Patrick Nowlin, the move is not limited to men’s basketball.
“It’s not just men’s basketball. It’s all Huntsman Center events,” Nowlin said.
A Nod To Utah Basketball History
While the move is primarily about fan experience, there is also a clear basketball-history component.
The west-side bench location is where Utah sat during the Majerus era, when the Runnin’ Utes were one of the top programs in the country and the Huntsman Center had a different level of edge. Alex Jensen was part of that era as a player, and now, as Utah’s head coach, the move reconnects the current program with one of its most successful periods.
Nowlin said the historical connection was part of the conversation, even if it was not solely Jensen’s decision.
“Yeah, it’s a nod to history,” Nowlin said. “I think Alex, him being here, he’s a steward of the program. There’s a lot of history to having it on that side.”
Still, Nowlin made clear the change was not simply pushed through by Jensen.
“It wasn’t a push from him,” Nowlin said. “It was a concerted effort from everybody to where, how do we create an area that the MUSS can have, but also how do we lean into our history, but still move forward in a way that we can honor that, but create an unbelievable environment.”
That is the heart of the move. Utah is trying to bring back a piece of its basketball identity while also reworking the building for the future.
How Fans Will Be Impacted
The change will affect some season-ticket holders, donors and fans seated near the current bench, MUSS and band areas, but Utah tried to limit the disruption.
Nowlin said the department spent months working through the seating impact and expects fewer than 200 accounts to be directly affected. Those accounts are in sections T, U and V.
“This wasn’t something that just came about,” Nowlin said. “We’ve been working on this for a few months now, and we wanted to find a way that we could minimize the accounts that were directly impacted, but still create the fan experience change we were after.”
Utah’s plan is to work individually with affected fans and mirror their seat location as closely as possible on the other end of the court.
“If you’re on one end and now you’re going on the other end, we will work with you to get you in the seat that is similar to where you were and allow you to have the same experience you’ve had, just on the other end of the court,” Nowlin said.
Utah will also hold a virtual seat-selection process from July 7-17, allowing fans who want to move to choose from available options.
“We’re going to take care of everybody, but we’re also going to allow people the choice and the freedom to be able to make the changes they want to make,” Nowlin said. “We want to create every opportunity we can to give our fans opportunities to choose their own experience.”
Not Part Of The Huntsman Renovation
The bench and MUSS move is not directly tied to the larger Huntsman Center renovation discussions. Nowlin said the change is instead connected to College Town Magic and Utah’s effort to improve the student and fan experience inside the building.
“It does not have to do with the renovation, but it does have to do with College Town Magic,” Nowlin said.
The move could create some new seating and premium opportunities, particularly around courtside and floor seating. Nowlin said Utah is still evaluating those possibilities.
“By doing this, this will create additional opportunities for us on courtside and floor,” Nowlin said. “We’re also looking to how do we enhance our premium experience across the board. So this is a step in a process that will continue.”
The Bottom Line
Utah’s bench move is not just a nostalgic callback to the Rick Majerus era, and it is not just a seating chart adjustment. It is part of a broader effort to reshape the Huntsman Center experience.
The team bench is moving back to the west side, where Utah sat during some of the program’s most successful years. The MUSS and band are moving to the east side, where Utah believes it can build a stronger, more consistent student-section identity tied to College Town Magic.
For Utah Athletics, it is another step toward rethinking how the Huntsman Center looks, sounds and feels on game day. For Jensen, the move reconnects the program to its winning past.
The symbolism will matter to longtime Utah basketball fans. The logistics will matter to students, band members and season-ticket holders. But the larger goal is simple: make the building feel more intentional, more connected and more like home again.
Steve Bartle is the Utah insider for KSL Sports. He hosts The Utah Blockcast (SUBSCRIBE) and appears on KSL Sports Zone to break down the Utes. You can follow him on X for the latest Utah updates and game analysis.
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SALT LAKE CITY – The San Juan County assessor has resigned partway through his second term, following a recommendation that he be removed from office.
Rick Meyer’s resignation became effective on Monday, according to San Juan County Commissioner Lori Maughan. A copy of Meyer’s resignation letter was not immediately available.
This comes after the Utah State Tax Commission determined that Meyer had failed to follow the law and was “unfit to perform his duties.” In a letter last week to San Juan County commissioners, the tax commission recommended “the immediate removal of the San Juan County assessor from office to protect the public interest and restore the integrity of the property tax system in San Juan County.”
Among other things, Meyer was accused of failing to tax agricultural buildings, misclassifying property, and giving property tax exemptions to certain parcels, including vacant land, when he shouldn’t have.
The recommendation to remove Meyer from office was the first under a recent state law giving the Utah State Tax Commission more power to take corrective action against county assessors who aren’t doing their jobs properly. Assessors play a major role in the property tax process by determining the value of property throughout their counties.
Yet, it was unclear whether the San Juan County Commission could have actually removed Meyer from office had he not stepped down.
With Meyer’s resignation, the San Juan County Assessor’s Office has just one employee left. Deputy assessor Nathan Pitts will run the office until the San Juan County Republican Party recommends a replacement and the County Commission appoints one.
“It’s me holding down the fort here,” Pitts told KSL on Thursday, noting that he has spoken with the Utah Association of Counties and the state tax commission about plans for this interim period. “Everybody’s on board to assist and try to make it the best as we can, (but) I’ve definitely got my work cut out for me.”
Pitts said he does not plan to run for county assessor to replace his old boss.
“That is not my intention at all,” he said. “I’m quite content as a deputy assessor.”
Meyer was first elected as San Juan County assessor in 2020 and won reelection in 2024. His current term was set to conclude in 2029.
The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.
FLAGSTAFF, AZ (AZFamily) — The Rock Canyon Fire, burning in northern Arizona near the border with Utah, doubled in size overnight to 4,512 acres and was 5% contained.
The fire has caused firefighters to evacuate hikers and campers in the area, and some roads in the Kaibab National Forest are closed.
People in Jacob Lake — less than 20 miles from the Rock Canyon Fire — say the new fire is stirring up anxiety after last year’s devastating fire season. They say they’re confident in firefighters, but after the trauma, they’re still holding their breath.
Memories of last year’s fires
For over 100 years, Jacob Lake Inn has been serving cookies to guests who want to visit the North Rim of the Grand Canyon or explore the Kaibab National Forest. Melinda Rich Marshall’s family has owned the inn since 1923.
Last year, they were evacuated during the White Sage Fire that burned close to 60,000 acres, and then the Dragon Bravo Fire, which destroyed nearly 150,000 acres, shut down the North Rim.
Now the Rock Canyon Fire has already burned thousands of acres north of the inn.
“I mean, honestly, our reaction was not again,” Rich Marshall said. “I mean, that’s really what it was.”
Rich Marshall said last year was hard enough, so once they heard about this new fire, it brought back bad memories.
“I’d say we have a little PTSD from it, seeing smoke and smelling smoke and all those things,” she said.
Fire burning in old burn scar
The Rock Canyon Fire was sparked over the weekend by a lightning strike.
Parts of it are burning in the White Sage burn scar. Bureau of Land Management spokesperson Dolores Garcia said old burn scars will usually slow down a new fire, but this time it’s actually fueling the flames.
“In some of those areas, we’re seeing quite a bit of fuels,” Garcia said. “We’re not seeing that the burn scar is helping much, especially with the winds as strong as they’ve been in some days and as dry as it’s been, those fuels are just tender and cured and really flammable.”
She said firefighters are attacking it from the ground and the air, but the high winds are limiting their ability to make water drops.
Hikers and campers were evacuated from the area. Garcia said she knows how stressful this must be to the surrounding communities after last year’s fires.
“We still understand that, it’s still a very fresh wound to many of the people who live up there, who’ve recreated up there for years,” she said. “That’s definitely at the forefront of our minds.”
Rich Marshall said while it’s scary, they have full trust in the firefighters.
“We’re really just grateful to see them and know the work that they are doing,” she said.
Rich Marshall said this is usually their peak season, but they’ve seen a bit of a slowdown even after the North rim reopened. She said people can support them by staying there or even just stopping in and getting some of their famous cookies.
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