Former Gov. Mike Leavitt says of the 2002 Olympics: “The quality of life in Utah would not be as good as it is if the Games didn’t come.”
(Paul Fraughton | The Salt Lake Tribune) Then-Gpv. Mike Leavitt unveils the new Welcome to Utah signs that will greet motorists on the major interstates and highways along the state borders ahead of the 2002 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Leavitt said at an Envision Utah breakfast Wednesday, May 28, 2025, that the quality of life in Utah would not have been as good without the Games, despite — or because of — the state’s growth.
Former Utah Gov. Mike Leavitt thought back to the night of the Closing Ceremony of the 2002 Winter Olympics. From where he sat in the south end zone of Rice-Eccles Stadium, the fireworks were abundant, bright and loud. But they were not as loud as a man in front of him who, Leavitt said, stood up at the climax of the finale and shouted “U-tah! U-tah! U-tah!”
Upon turning around and realizing the governor was behind him, the man became embarrassed, Leavitt told a crowd at a breakfast hosted at the stadium Wednesday by the nonprofit networking group Envision Utah.
“‘Governor,’” Leavitt recalled the man saying, “‘I was against this, and I was wrong.’”
Utah’s endeavor to host the 2034 Winter Olympics and Paralympics has been met with unprecedented enthusiasm within the state. One poll put the event’s approval rate at 79%. Still, naysayers exist. And among their chief concerns is the population growth — and ensuing traffic, water and housing issues — the focus on the state is likely to incite.
If the 2002 Winter Games put Utah on the world map, some in the state would prefer to take a dry eraser and wipe it back off.
But Leavitt and Brad Wilson, the state legislator-turned-CEO of the 2034 Olympic and Paralympic committee, said they take a different view. Utah is destined to grow either way, they said Wednesday. In their view, the Olympics can only make that growth more manageable.
“The growth was going to happen whether or not the ’02 Games occurred because of who we are and what we are,” Wilson said. “The Games were … a catalyst to help accelerate some of the things we needed to do to make the quality of life here better. The Games have that opportunity to do that again. So, I just view it differently. Let’s use the Games to help us make the state a remarkable place.”
That was then
In 2002, Utah’s population was 2.3 million. By 2034, it is projected to nearly double, to 4.3 million, according to a study by the University of Utah’s Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute. The state has experienced net gains from in-migration in 33 of the past 35 years, and that shows no signs of slowing.
Sure, Utah still has plenty of open space. In terms of density, it is the 11th least populous state. However, much of its acreage — 35 million of the state’s 54.3 million acres, or roughly 64% — is owned by the federal government and off-limits to building.
That translates to more congestion, more expensive housing and real estate, and more environmental issues nearly everywhere else.
But Leavitt suggested that if Utahns think they are feeling the pinch now, consider what the state would have looked like without the 2002 Olympics.
“The quality of life in Utah would not be as good as it is,” he said, “if the Games didn’t come.”
“One hundred percent,” Wilson agreed.
This is now
The 2034 Games will provide similar opportunities for structured planning, the duo said. Plus, they provide a deadline and spotlight that can be useful tools for cutting through red tape.
Envision Utah’s stated mission is to bring business, government and community leaders together to solve issues within the state. Among those interim CEO Jason Brown said the group wants to tackle alongside Olympic committee leaders are housing and education. Wilson mentioned transportation improvements as well as measures aimed at boosting Utah’s air quality and reviving the Great Salt Lake.
“I hope that we don’t save the Great Salt Lake because of the Games. That’s not the right reasons,” Wilson said. “But if the fear of a little embarrassment or the fear of a lot of bad headlines — which would really hurt our business community, would hurt this community in a lot of different ways, because the lake is in bad shape — if the fear of that is a little bit of a motivator for everybody in this room and policymakers to do the right things, I’m OK with that.”
Neither Wilson nor Leavitt spelled out detailed plans Wednesday for handling the expected growth. That’s in part, Wilson said, because Olympic organizers want Utahns to look at their neighborhoods and areas of expertise, and envision how they could be better — and what they can do to help with that.
They encouraged the naysayers to make the Olympics work for them.
“There was a lot of opposition on the same basis [in 2002], but they were wrong,” Leavitt said, reflecting on the man who changed his mind after the 2002 Games. “We won’t have the quality of life we want without the Games. We can have it using the Games as a catalyst to preserve it.”