SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — “We’re back, baby! The Olympics are coming back to Utah!”

Those were the words of Utah Gov. Spencer Cox early Wednesday morning as the United States was chosen as the host country for its fifth Winter Olympics. Salt Lake City got the nod from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for the 2034 Games.

Salt Lake’s delegation appeared before the 142nd Session of the IOC to make their final pitch before a full vote of the membership. This is the second time Salt Lake will host the Games, after previously hosting the 2002 Games. The U.S. has also hosted the Winter Games at Lake Placid, New York, in 1932 and 1980 and Squaw Valley, California in 1960.

The IOC voted 83-6 to award Salt Lake City the Games, with six abstentions.

Salt Lake 2034 CEO Fraser Bullock said the theme for the Games will be “Elevate.”

“Elevate our communities, elevate sports, and elevate the Games’ experience,” said Bullock.

Cox pointed out Utah’s 2002 Games have given the state and city experience to host the 2034 Games, using the same venues as the previous event.

“We have held 1,100 sporting events since the 2002 Games,” Cox said. “That’s an average of 50 events a year every year since 2002.”

Cox also said the state has 100% political alignment over bringing the Games back to Utah.

Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall said 80% of the city’s population supports bringing the Games back. Athletes from 30 nations already train at Utah’s facility annually.

Bullock said he remembered standing on a stadium roof during the closing ceremony of the 2002 Games, watching the fireworks light the mountains.

“I really didn’t want that moment to end,” Bullock said, getting choked up, later telling IOC members, “You will find us the best of partners.”

The 2034 Games are currently scheduled for February, with the Paralympic Games to follow in March.

The International Olympic Committee recommended Salt Lake City during its executive board meeting June 12. IOC members toured the 2002 Olympic sites in April.

Karl Stoss, chair of the Future Host Commission for the Winter Games, said at the time he felt Utah could be ready to “host tomorrow” if needed.

On Wednesday, Stoss called Salt Lake City’s bid “a very strong project, with an exceptionally high level of public and political support. This is a clear mission, and we could feel it all the time when we went to Salt Lake City in Utah.”

Stoss also told a quick anecdote about being in the Salt Lake City International Airport, and when he asked an airport staff member where his gate was, the staff member recognized Stoss as “the Olympic guy.”

“‘Yeah, man!'” Stoss quoted the airport worker. “‘Bring the Games back to Salt Lake!'”

“The Olympic and Paralympics represent so much more than competition,” Cox said. “At its core, the Olympic movement is about building community and celebrating excellence, things we do really well in Utah. More than 80% of Utahns and 100% of our elected leaders supported our Olympic bid. We’re ready to host another Winter Games, and we can’t wait to welcome the world back to Utah in 2034.”  

Doping scandal brought up

A number of IOC members slowed the vote in a way they did not when awarding the 2030 Winter Games to France earlier Wednesday. They raised concerns about how nations might try to sidestep or water down the anti-doping regulations that are part of the Games.

Specifically, the IOC altered the contract with Salt Lake City that requires the Games’ sponsors to adhere to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) as being the “supreme authority” in testing and disqualifying athletes found to be in violation of rules. IOC officials confirmed the Salt Lake City delegation had signed the amendment to the contract in order to obtain the Games.

The admonishments from the IOC come just two weeks after WADA cleared itself of wrongdoing in not disciplining several Chinese swimmers who tested positive for banned drugs in the 2020 Summer Games. Chinese officials claimed the swimmers had been “unwittingly contaminated.”

While WADA’s report noted it had difficulty in believing Chinese claims, a special prosecutor appointed to investigate the situation called the organization’s actions in clearing the swimmers as “indisputably reasonable.”

Seeing as the swimmers in question defeated U.S. swimmers, however, it led some American critics to question WADA’s work.

While the discussion over the scandal did not have any involvement with or bearing on Salt Lake City, it delayed the vote by nearly half an hour as half a dozen IOC members took the occasion to speak.

Utah officials, including Bullock and Cox, agreed that they would back WADA and they wanted the 2034 Games to be “clean.”

The future of the Games

The IOC actually set up two Winter Games in their voting: The French Alps were chosen to host 2030 Games.

France hosted the very first Winter Games in 1924 in Chamonix. The country has also hosted Winter Games in Grenoble in 1968 and Albertville in 1992.

Italy has already been chosen to host the 2026 Games. Switzerland has entered a “privileged dialog” with the IOC for the 2038 Games.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.