Seeing and learning: Milano-Cortina games not a vacation for Ogden-area delegation
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- Entertainers perform during the Olympic opening ceremony at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
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- (From left) Snowbasin Resort Chief Operating Officer and General Manager Davy Ratchford, Ogden Mayor Ben Nadolski, Visit Ogden President and CEO Sara Toliver and Weber County Commissioner Jim Harvey speak with the editorial board about the Ogden delegation’s trip to Italy to learn about hosting the Olympics at the Standard-Examiner in Ogden on Monday, Feb. 2, 2026.
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- People walk near Olympic rings displayed inside the Olympic Village ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)
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- Weber County Commissioner Jim Harvey speaks with the editorial board about the Ogden delegation’s trip to Italy to discuss Olympic hosting duties at the Standard-Examiner in Ogden on Monday, Feb. 2, 2026.
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- Volunteers walk to an Olympic venue ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Misper Apawu)
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- Visit Ogden President and CEO Sara Toliver speaks with the editorial board about the Ogden delegation’s trip to Italy to discuss Olympic hosting duties at the Standard-Examiner in Ogden on Monday, Feb. 2, 2026.
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- A view of the Snowboarding and Freestyle Skiing events which will take place during the upcoming Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)
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- Snowbasin Resort Chief Operating Officer and General Manager Davy Ratchford speaks with the editorial board about the Ogden delegation’s trip to Italy to discuss Olympic hosting duties at the Standard-Examiner in Ogden on Monday, Feb. 2, 2026.
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- Fireworks explode around the Olympic rings during the Olympic opening ceremony at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
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- Ogden Mayor Ben Nadolski speaks with the editorial board about the Ogden delegation’s trip to Italy to discuss Olympic hosting duties at the Standard-Examiner in Ogden on Monday, Feb. 2, 2026.
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- Preparations for the first curling competition are made at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
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- Snowbasin Resort Chief Operating Officer and General Manager Davy Ratchford speaks with the editorial board about the Ogden delegation’s trip to Italy to discuss Olympic hosting duties at the Standard-Examiner in Ogden on Monday, Feb. 2, 2026.
Editor’s Note: This is the second of three stories following a Standard-Examiner editorial board interview with the Ogden delegation attending the 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics. This delegation includes Ogden Mayor Ben Nadolski, Weber County Commissioner Jim Harvey, Snowbasin Resort Chief Operating Officer and General Manager Davy Ratchford and Visit Ogden President and CEO Sara Toliver. This interview was conducted before the delegation left for Italy.
OGDEN — As they were called to do so four years ago, the youth of the world have assembled in northern Italy to celebrate the 25th Winter Olympic Games.
Joining them at the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Games are Ogden Mayor Ben Nadolski, Weber County Commissioner Jim Harvey, Snowbasin Resort Chief Operating Officer and General Manager Davy Ratchford and Visit Ogden President and CEO Sara Toliver.
For anyone else, this would be an opportunity to personally witness athletic history at one of the many Olympic events, visit the Duomo di Milano or enjoy Cortina d’Ampezzo’s many museums.
Of course, they’re not here to see any of that.
“We’re not just going on a vacation,” Nadolski said. “This is a working trip that we were invited to be a part of.”
He said that the delegation, which will be joined by dozens of their counterparts from across the state, will spend a week in Italy learning about the ins and outs of hosting.
“They said to prepare for at least 12-hours per day and 30,000 steps per day because they’re going to have us so booked out and scheduled seeing different elements of what it takes to host the games and host events,” he said.
Ratchford said this isn’t an unusual set up.
“It might be a little unusual for people to understand because they’re not in the event business, but this is what we do all the time,” he said. “I don’t think I’m going to any events to go and sit and watch a race. Would I love to watch my girl Lindsey Vonn crush it this year? One hundred percent, but I’ll be watching it from television like everybody else. When I go there, it is a completely regimented schedule that I’m actually panicking about because of how much there is in it.”
He said that similar delegations representing other future Olympics hosts such as France, Brisbane and Los Angeles are also descending on Milano-Cortina to learn about hosting duties.
“There’s meetings set aside to connect the right people to partners and vendors and potential opportunities,” he said. “By 2030, we’ll have an even bigger group going because then you’re really getting into the specifics of how this is going to go — we’ll be in France for that one — and then the folks after us will go. This is a normal process to maximize the experience fo what these games will be and to learn. It is a huge event and will have complexity and layers to it we haven’t even dreamt of yet.”
Oliver said this will be a great learning experience for Ogden officials given the city will not be the primary hub of activity in 2034.
“It’s super helpful from my perspective … to understand how communities that aren’t part of the urban city center core activate and engage people around them and understand what brings people in and how they want to engage with the events and the city celebrations,” she said.
Harvey said he was looking forward to being able to share some of his own expertise.
“I feel super fortunate to be in this place to have the opportunity to take my 30 years of event operations to go over and bring it back and teach the next generation,” he said. “When 2034 comes, I won’t be here — I’ll be here in Ogden but I won’t be in this position. To be able to perpetuate that, it’ll be good for community because it brings both visitors in, they spend money and that creates jobs. I’m looking for those opportunities for my kids and my grandkids.”
Nadolski said this week of meetings will be key in bringing the city and other official s up to speed on what they need to know.
“For me, you don’t know what you don’t know,” he said. “I need to know exactly what we’re committing our community to and what I need to start putting into place now.”
