Deer Valley Resort The
Deer Valley Resort is located east of
downtown Salt Lake City, in
Park City, Utah. Deer Valley has been a popular skiing location since the 1930s, and was improved by the
Works Progress Administration (WPA) who built many of its first ski trails and other facilities during the winter of 1936–37. In 1946, local citizens built the first ski lifts, and the area became known as "Snow Park". In 1981, a private resort officially opened in the same area as Deer Valley, and has grown to include six mountains with six bowls, of glade skiing and of snow-making. The resort totals in size. The spectator stadium located at the end of each run was 12 stories tall and included seating for 10,000 people, while spectator standing areas were located along the sides of each course. The standing areas and stadium combined allowed roughly 13,300 spectators to view each event, with 99.4 percent of tickets sold. During the games, 95 percent of Deer Valley remained open to the public for normal seasonal operations. The arena would be funded through a variety of ways, but would be owned the municipality of West Valley City, and used for various events before and after the games. Ground was broken for the E Center on March 22, 1996, and the arena was completed in September 1997. The arena was designed by
Populous (formerly HOK Sport), cost $54.1 million to construct, and was dedicated on September 19, 1997. The first event held at the new venue was
WCW's Monday Nitro Live on September 22, 1997. As the home of the
Utah Grizzlies, the E Center served as one of the two venues for
ice hockey during the 2002 games. The hockey events held in the venue were spread out during six days in 31 sessions, and it was capable of holding 8,400 spectators, plus press members, during the competitions. 96.7 percent of available tickets were sold, for a total of 230,657 spectators witnessing events in the arena. During the
2002 Winter Paralympics, the arena hosted the ice sledge hockey events.
Park City Mountain Resort Park City Mountain Resort is located east of downtown Salt Lake City, in
Park City, Utah. It was opened as Treasure Mountain by United Park City Mines on December 21, 1963, as the last surviving mining company in Park City, with funds from a federal government program meant to revive the economically depressed town. When it originally opened, it boasted the longest gondola in the United States, as well as a double chairlift, a J-bar lift, base and summit lodges, and a nine-hole golf course. A special "Skier's Subway" was used to transport skiers nearly into the mountain through the pitch-black Spiro Tunnel on a mine train, where skiers then boarded a mining elevator that lifted them to the surface, from there they had access to the entire mountain. During the 2002 games, the resort hosted the
men's and
women's giant slalom,
men's and
women's snowboarding parallel giant slalom, and
men's and
women's snowboarding halfpipe events. The resort's Eagle Race Arena and Eagle Superpipe were used as the Olympics runs. Temporary stadiums were erected at the end of each run with spectator standing areas on each side, creating a combined capacity of 16,500 persons. 99.8 percent of available tickets for events at the resort were sold, for a total of 95,991 spectators witnessing events at the resort. After the 1989 Olympic referendum passed and Salt Lake City lost its 1991 bid to host the 1998 Winter Olympics, the Utah Sports Authority and Provo City decided to wait until Salt Lake City bid again for the 2002 Winter Olympics before beginning construction on the arena. After Salt Lake City won the 2002 Olympic bid in 1995, planning began again for what venue Utah County would host, and an ice sheet was decided upon. On September 17, 1997, ground was broken for construction of the new arena. It was to be a building, with two ice sheets side by side. One ice sheet would have seating for about 2,000 spectators while the other would seat 300. By the time ground was broken, the price had increased to $8.5 million, $1.5 million more than originally planned, paid for by Seven Peaks. After construction had already begun, the SLOC decided to host hockey events at the new arena rather than using Utah Valley State College's McKay Center. The SLOC would contribute $5.25 million towards the project, whose cost had just jumped to $10.75 million, with the addition of 12 locker rooms instead of four, 8,000 seats (2,300 of which would be permanent), and other minor expansions to the original plan. The arena opened November 20, 1998, in what was considered a "soft opening", and following the completion of minor work, the arena was supposed to have a grand opening in January or February 1999. In December 1998, however, allegations of a scandal involving members of the SLOC and the
International Olympic Committee concerning the
2002 Olympic bid surfaced, pushing back the grand opening. The arena was finally opened on September 29, 1999, and hosted its first event, a women's ice hockey game between the
University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs and the
University of Calgary Oval Extremes, two days later. The completed arena cost $12.4 million to build, included two ice sheets, had seating for over 2,000 spectators, and was in size. During the 2002 games, both men's and women's
ice hockey games and practices were held at the arena. Because of its original size, over 6,000 temporary seats had to be installed to boost the ice center's capacity to 8,400, including press members. 93 percent of tickets were sold, for a record total 131,067 of spectators witnessing events in the arena.
Salt Lake Ice Center The Delta Center (renamed Salt Lake Ice Center for the duration of the Games due to IOC sponsorship rules) opened in 1991 as the new home arena for the
Utah Jazz of the
National Basketball Association (NBA). It hosted the
figure skating events and the
short track speed skating event. The arena was capable of holding an average of 14,600 spectators for each session, and 100 percent of available tickets for events in the arena were sold, for a total of 145,997 spectators witnessing events in the Ice Center. Because it was normally a basketball arena, several changes to the floor, and seating configurations had to be made. In order to create an Olympic-sized ice rink, the lower levels of seating had to be retracted, making the first level of spectator seating several feet higher than the skater's heads, a problem coined "the Pit". The Utah Jazz played their last home game on February 2, 2002, giving organizers less than a week to transform the arena in time for the games. Temporary changes included a separate audio system capable of producing higher quality sound, new scoreboards, the removal of 1,200 seats to make room for media tables, building camera platforms, and the removal of Utah Jazz paraphernalia.
Snowbasin Snowbasin is located northeast of downtown Salt Lake City, in
Weber County, Utah, and is one of the oldest continuously operating ski areas in the United States. Following the end of
World War I and the
Great Depression, numerous small ski resorts were developed in Utah's snow-packed mountains. Eager to capitalize on this growth, Weber County decided to redevelop the area in and around Wheeler Basin, a deteriorated watershed area that had been overgrazed and subjected to aggressive timber-harvesting. Lands were restored and turned over to the
US Forest Service, and by 1938, the Forest Service and
Alf Engen had committed to turning the area into a recreational site. In 1939, the first ski tow was built and in service at the new Snow Basin ski park. The spectator capacity was 22,500 per event; 99.1 percent of tickets were sold, and 124,373 spectators were able to view events at the Snowbasin Olympic venue. During the 2002 Winter Paralympics, Snowbasin hosted the Alpine Skiing events, including downhill, super-G, slalom, and giant slalom.
Soldier Hollow Soldier Hollow is located southeast of downtown Salt Lake City, in the
Wasatch Mountain State Park near
Midway, Utah. It was the furthest venue from Salt Lake City, with an estimated drive time of 2 to hours from downtown during the games. The venue was one of only three which was built and designed by SLOC specifically for the 2002 Winter Olympics. Soldier Hollow was chosen by the SLOC as an Olympic venue in October 1997 over several other possible locations including Sherwood Hills near
Logan, Utah. Preliminary work began soon after the venue site was chosen, but major construction did not begin until 1999. Construction on the venue had been completed enough (80% complete) to host its first major event, the
U.S. Cross Country Championships, on January 8, 2000. Construction on the venue's day lodge began with a groundbreaking ceremony on July 5, 2000. The lodge was completed in December 2000, and dedicated on January 5, 2001. The venue cost SLOC $22 million to construct, and is still in use today. During the 2002 games, Soldier Hollow hosted the
biathlon,
cross-country skiing, and
Nordic combined events. The venue itself hosted 64,160 biathlon spectators, 99,320 cross-country spectators, and 1,794 Nordic combined spectators during these events. During the 2002 Winter Paralympics, it hosted the
biathlon and
cross-country events. Because of its distance from Salt Lake City and other large population centers of Utah, a special "Western Experience" was created at the venue's spectator plaza to give visitors activities to do between competitions. The Western Experience included music and entertainment, a
mountain rendezvous, pioneer reenactments, cowboy camps, a wild mustang exhibit, and American Indian displays. In order to help cut down on vehicle traffic in the canyons, and to give spectators a unique experience, the SLOC reached an agreement with the Historic
Heber Valley Railroad to transport spectators to the Soldier Hollow venues. A special station was constructed along the railroad's tracks near the venue which would allow two to four trains carrying 200 passengers each per day. The former
Union Pacific No. 618 steam-engine would pull an eight-car train carrying the passengers to the Soldier Hollow depot, where they disembarked and continued to the venue entrance on a horse-drawn
sleigh.
The Ice Sheet at Ogden The Ice Sheet at Ogden is located north of downtown Salt Lake City, on the campus of
Weber State University in
Ogden, Utah. Following the passage of Utah's 1989 Olympic referendum, Ogden submitted a proposal to the Utah Sports Authority and Utah's Olympic organizers to construct an Olympic-sized practice ice sheet in the city. On September 10, 1990, the Utah Sports Authority selected a site near the
Dee Events Center in Ogden as the site of an Olympic ice sheet over other locations in downtown Salt Lake City and Provo, Utah. The property for the venue would be leased from Weber State University for 50 years. A groundbreaking ceremony at the start of construction was held on December 17, 1992. The facility was to cost $5.9 million, with $3 million from the State of Utah (as authorized in the 1989 Olympic referendum), $2 million from
Weber County, and the remainder from private donations. Following the venue's completion, a two-day grand opening was held on April 2–3, 1994, which included performances by Olympian
Scott Hamilton and U.S. Champions Todd Sands and Jennifer Menno. By the time it was completed, the price had gone up to $6.2 million, and the arena had seating for 2,000 spectators and was in size. It was originally designed to be used for practice and preliminary competitions among ice skaters and hockey teams for the 2002 Winter Olympics. It was later decided that the ice sheet would be used for
curling, and the ice sheet closed to replace the sand-based floor with a more efficient concrete floor on May 2, 1999. The sand-based flooring allowed freezing tubes to shift, causing uneven ridges in the ice. The new concrete floor was finished in July 1999, and the ice sheet reopened for public use within weeks. During the 2002 games, the Ice Sheet at Ogden hosted the curling events, which had been introduced in the 1998 Winter Olympics. The venue held about 2,000 spectators, and 96.7 percent of tickets were sold, with a total of 40,572 spectators witnessing events at the ice sheet.
Utah Olympic Oval in
Kearns, Utah was built specifically for the 2002 Winter Olympics The
Utah Olympic Oval is located west of
downtown Salt Lake City, in
Kearns, Utah. Along with Soldier Hollow, and the Utah Olympic Park it was built specifically for the 2002 Winter Olympics. On October 5, 1992, the Utah Sports Authority chose the Oquirrh Park Fitness Center in Kearns as the site for the 2002 Olympic Oval, beating out other locations in West Valley City,
Sandy and downtown Salt Lake City. Funds from the 1989 Olympic referendum would be used to construct the oval, and would be repaid with profits from the games. The plans called to use $3.7 million of tax payer money to construct the oval, which would be an outdoor facility. If Salt Lake City won its 1995 bid for the 2002 games, Olympic revenues would be used to cover the oval and build an ice sheet in the center of the track. By the time the groundbreaking ceremony was held in May 1994, the price tag had increased to $4.1 million, with an expected completion date sometime that December. Because of cold temperatures and a wet spring, cement for the oval could not be poured, and the oval didn't open until September 1, 1995, almost a year behind schedule. The oval was formally dedicated in a ceremony, attended by Olympian
Cathy Turner, on January 12, 1996. Prior to it being covered and used during the Olympic Games, the oval would be used for inline skating during the summer and ice skating during the winter months. After the SLOC began the design process for a permanent cover, it was decided to pull up and replace the entire oval, a process which began in June 1999. The new oval was designed by Gilles Stransky Brems Smith (GSBS) Architects of Salt Lake City and constructed by Layton Construction, with an estimated cost was $27 million. To keep costs down, and give an unobstructed view of the ice, the roof would be constructed similar to a
suspension bridge. Between twenty-four masts, twelve on each side of the building, steel cables nearly long and inches in diameter were strung, suspending the roof above the oval. Once it was completed, the building would be the size of four football fields, and housed two hockey-sized ice sheets in the center, the 400-meter speed skating track. Work on the oval was completed in time to host its first event, the
World Single Distance Championships, in March 2001. During its construction, the oval was expected to become the world's fastest, mainly because of its elevation. It is the world's highest indoor oval at above sea level, higher than Calgary's
Olympic Oval, the site of the
1988 Winter Olympics. Because of the elevation, there is less air resistance for the skaters and less oxygen frozen into the ice, making it harder, denser and faster. During the 2002 games, the oval hosted the
speed skating events. Temporary seating was installed and the oval had a capacity for about 5,200 spectators plus press members. 100 percent of available tickets for the venue's events were sold, allowing 53,056 spectators to witness events in the oval.
Utah Olympic Park The
Utah Olympic Park is located east of downtown Salt Lake City, near Park City, Utah. Like the Utah Olympic Oval and Soldier Hollow, the park was designed and built under the supervision of SLOC. The 1989 Olympic referendum, which was passed by Utahns, allowed for tax payer money to fund a winter sports park that would be used if Salt Lake City won their bids for the 1998 or 2002 Winter Olympics. In 1990, the Utah Sports Authority announced their plans to build the park, which included ski jumps and a bobsled-luge track, in Bear Hollow near Park city. A groundbreaking ceremony was held May 29, 1991, when construction on the park got underway. The park had an estimated cost of $26.3 million, and was planned to be completed in September 1992, including the ski jumps, bobsled-luge track, a lodge and ski museum. Four of the park's ski jumps (18, 38, 65 and 90 meters) were completed and opened on December 12, 1992, and were formally dedicated in a ceremony on January 9, 1993. On July 31, 1993, the summer training facilities at the park, which included an aerial and mogul water ramp training pool, were dedicated. A groundbreaking ceremony on June 3, 1994, signaled the start of construction on the Bobsled-luge track. The track was completed December 28, 1996, and the grand opening was held on January 25, 1997. The very first run on the new track was by luger
Jon Owen on January 10, 1997. The day lodge was also completed. While construction was progressing on the track, Salt Lake City won its 1995 bid to host the 2002 Winter Olympics, and plans were developed to expand the park. On October 9, 1997, the SLOC okayed the plan to spend an additional $48 million to upgrade and expand the park. The plans called for replacing the existing 90-meter ski jump, and building a new 120-meter jump. The construction of starting houses on the track, chairlifts, storage buildings, new access roads, pedestrian bridges, parking and sewer and water lines were part of the plan. The transform of the park began during the summer of 1998, and ownership of the park was transferred from the Utah Sports Authority to the SLOC on July 14, 1999. In Spring 2000 the Utah Winter Sports Park became the Utah Olympic Park, and the majority of expansion work was completed by that fall. == Non-competitive venues ==