Olympics
As the 2026 Winter Games wrap up in Milan Cortina, some of us find ourselves still jonesing for that unique surge of inspiration and adrenaline. Without a daily dose of watching the world’s greatest skiers and snowboarders push beyond human limits around race gates, on a Nordic course or spinning through the air, we’re left with a certain emptiness that feels a little like a hangover.
Unfortunately, we’ve got to wait another four years before these spectacles once again land on the biggest international stage. However, in Utah, home of the 2034 Winter Olympics, you can get your Olympic fix now — in real life, in person, in both winter and summer.
When Salt Lake City landed the 2002 Olympics, organizers promised to sustain the vast infrastructure built for the occasion, using it for years to come. Not only is much of it going to come into play again for 2034, but we will see nearly 40% more events than in 2002, including (freestyle ski and snowboard) Slopestyle, Big Air, Women’s Ski Jumping, Ski Cross, Mixed Team Snowboard Cross and a much higher-profile Paralympics. What’s more exciting is that the lasting infrastructure allows the average visitor (with a range of skiing/riding skills, cardiovascular strength and overall nerve) to discover their own personal, adrenaline-pinching Olympic experience.
Try Bobsledding or Freestyle Tricks into a Pool
Park City’s Olympic Park is the key hub for Olympic-style adventure. Built for the 2002 Olympics and operated by nonprofit Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation, the park is home to the Olympic bobsled, skeleton and luge courses (one of only four tracks in North America), six Nordic ski jumps, and several freestyle ramps, where athletes can dial in their tricks landing in a pool as well as a museum housing fascinating artifacts from the 2002 Games. In the winter, you will find athletes of all ages and levels – including Olympians and Paralympians – advancing their skills at the park. Also, you can even hop into a sled yourself, hitting speeds close to 70 mph as professional bobsledders steer the rig down the track in the Bobsled Experience, available in both winter (on the ice) and summer (using sleds equipped with wheels).
Also, if you have always wondered about your airborne prowess on skis, but haven’t wanted to find out without a soft landing, the Olympic Park offers ramp lessons in the summer, in which you warm up on a trampoline before donning a wet suit, helmet and skis and working your way up the ramp system, making bigger splashes as you go. The surrounding grass in the park is a popular picnic spot in the summer, so expect to have some spectators and possibly a cheering section.
Send it on the Olympic Downhill Course
Hosting Olympic Downhill and super-G in 2002, Snowbasin Resort will host all Olympic and Paralympic Alpine Races in 2034. The downhill courses – Grizzly (men’s course) and Wildflower (women’s course) – are open (snow coverage-permitting) to the public. Riding the Allen Peak Tram (aka, the “beer can” gondola) to the highest point of the resort, maneuvering down to the start of the downhill course is an adventure in itself. Standing at the top drop and seeing the finish area 3,000 feet below through the tips of your skis is when your knees will likely start knocking.
Ski with a Champion
If you’d rather simply ask the pros about their world stage experience, head to Deer Valley Resort, home of the 2002 and 2034 Olympic moguls and aerials competitions. The resort’s Ski with a Champion program buys you a full or half day of skiing or riding with an Olympians or Paralympian. The champion companions include mogul skiers Shannon Bahrke and Jillian Vogtli, freestylers Trace Worthington, Ashley Caldwell or Kris Feddersen, monoskier Chris Waddell and former alpine racer and big mountain skier Kaylin Richardson.
Nordic and Biathlon in Winter and in Summer
One of the most iconic Nordic competition areas in the world, Soldier Hollow, the venue for all Olympic Nordic and biathlon events, boasts 28 kilometers of track. In the winter, in addition to regular top tier Nordic events, it hosts about 500 up-and-coming racers every week. One pausing to watch the action will find it dizzying to see how fast these human motors can go. Pros will teach Nordic skiers of any level the art of classic or skate technique as well as the beauty of pairing the glide with target shooting in biathlon lessons. In summer, those many kilometers of tracks are smooth pavement and the biathlon lessons are still available for visitors on roller skis.
“While some winter programs are seasonal, Utah’s Olympic venues continue to offer a range of Olympic and Paralympic-inspired experiences year-round.”
— Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation’s Gabby Saunders.
So, if this February inspired you to try your gliding and shooting skills, you don’t need snow to make it happen at Soldier Hollow. Also, start planning your questions now for the Olympian or Paralympian you’ll spend the day with at Deer Valley and pluck up your nerve for a knee-knocking ski on the actual Olympic downhill course at Snowbasin next winter. In the meantime, a trip down the bullet-fast bobsled course or a water ramp lesson in ski or snowboard tricks are available starting in June at Olympic Park.
With its storied Olympic history and world-class venues still open to the public, Utah offers the perfect cure for an Olympic hangover. Anyone eager to keep that surge of inspiration alive can experience the sports of the Games firsthand, year-round.
