Salt Lake City, known for a notorious bribery scandal leading up to the 2002 Winter Olympics, has been granted the honor of hosting the 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. The city’s victory in securing the bid was accompanied by a significant alteration to the host city contract that had been previously signed by Salt Lake City and Utah officials.
The revised contract now includes a provision allowing the International Olympic Committee (I.O.C.) to revoke the Games if any attempts are made to undermine the authority of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), the global body responsible for overseeing doping control in sports.
Prior to the final decision in Paris, several Olympic committee officials commended Salt Lake City’s bid but expressed displeasure over U.S. investigations into doping and swimming officials involved in the case of two dozen elite Chinese swimmers who tested positive for a banned substance before the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
Revelations of these positive tests, brought to light by a New York Times investigation, have cast doubt on WADA’s effectiveness in combating doping in international sports. However, it is the ongoing federal probes in the United States, which have already resulted in subpoenas for key swimming officials, that have unsettled top sports and anti-doping authorities.
Despite these challenges, Salt Lake City officials have agreed to the demanded changes and have formally endorsed the revised hosting agreement, as confirmed by John Coates, the I.O.C.’s chief legal officer.
