Last week, Utah Gov. Gary Herbert announced the formation of an exploratory committee to look at bidding for the Winter Olympics in 2022 or 2026.
To use a sports cliche, there are a lot of hurdles to overcome before and if Salt Lake secures another bid.
A city hosting a second Winter Olympic Games isn't without precedent.
Lake Placid, N.Y., first hosted the games in 1932 and did it again 48 years later, in 1980.
Innsbruck, Austria, hosted in 1964 and turned around and did it again 12 years later, in 1976, when Denver gave up its rights to the games.
St. Moritz, Switzerland, hosted in 1928 and 1948.
"The 2002 Winter Games were an exciting chapter of Salt Lake City's history," Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker, a member of the committee, said in a news release.
"We believe an investment of meaningful time and effort is worthwhile to make the right decision -- not only for Salt Lake City, but for all of Utah."
Is Utah in the position to join Lake Placid, Innsbruck and St. Moritz?
There are two assigned Winter Olympics before 2022: Sochi, Russia, hosts in 2014, and Pyeongchang, South Korea, hosts in 2018.
The 2022 bid would be decided in 2015.
"We certainly have the components to do another Olympics," said Jeff Robbins, president and CEO of the Utah Sports Commission.
"We have venues ready for the Olympics. We have culture and the arts, and we have the needed assets."
However, Robbins said a bid right now for the 2022 Winter Olympics is "hypothetical."
Currently, the International Olympic Committee and United States Olympic Committee are in a dispute over revenue sharing and have been negotiating on the issue.
The USOC didn't put up a bid city for the 2020 Summer Olympics because of the disagreement and issues over Chicago's failed bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics.
The 2022 Olympics could be the first opportunity for a U.S. city once the dispute ends.
The U.S. decision on a bid city may have to come by the end of this year or early next year, which is why Herbert wants a report from the committee in just four months.
Robbins said he isn't even sure, if the dispute is settled soon, whether the USOC would decide to go after a summer or a winter bid first. The U.S. hasn't hosted the Summer Olympics since Atlanta in 1996.
The Reno-Lake Tahoe area and a group in Denver have also shown interest in bidding for the 2022 Olympics.
Squaw Valley, Calif., near Lake Tahoe, hosted in 1960.
Internationally for 2022, there have been online bid rumblings out of such places as Switzerland, Kazakhstan, France, Bulgaria, Finland, Spain, Norway, Ukraine, Croatia, Switzerland, Chile, New Zealand and other countries.
The most organized efforts seem to be in France, Switzerland and the Scandinavian countries.
Robbins said the best thing Utah could do right now is to continue to host major sporting events.
"Our Olympic legacy program is as strong as anyone," he said. "We have the venues and many volunteers we still use for various events.
"We go out on the marketplace and bid for many sporting events."
Robbins said Utah has hosted more than 400 sporting events since 2002. He pointed out last weekend's Dew Tour at Snowbasin. The events are shown on NBC, the current network for the Olympics.
"It (the tour) certainly has an Olympic component, with many of the competitors being Olympians," Robbins said. "It provides pretty good exposure for Ogden and Weber County."
Utah has also tried to keep its name in the forefront of the Olympics, sending delegates to Torino, Italy; Beijing; and Vancouver, Canada.
If Salt Lake City were selected to host the Olympics again, there would be a number of new sports that will first be seen in Sochi:
SBlt Half-pipe skiing for men and women.
SBlt Women's ski jumping.
SBlt Biathlon mixed relay.
SBltâÇFigure skating team competition.
In case you are wondering, Philip Hersh, of the Chicago Tribune, reports that each figure skating team will have six skaters: one man, one woman, one pair and one ice-dancing couple. Points will be awarded to each skater and each couple, and the total for all four disciplines will determine the winner.
Team members can compete in the individual events as well and perform the same program in each.
SBlt Luge team relay.
In case you are also wondering how this one works, members of the relay team -- a men's singles, a women's singles and a double team -- start their runs after the previous luger(s) hit a touch pad at the finish line.
SBlt Slopestyle snowboarding.
SBlt Slopestyle skiing.
About.com defines slopestyle as "a competitive event for freestyle snowboarders and skiers that involves an athlete performing tricks in the air as well as on rails and boxes. Unlike racing, there is no clock -- competitors are awarded points for style and difficulty of their run by a group of judges."
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