There’s more than the Olympics at a Winter Games. What to know about the Paralympics

The executive director of the International Paralympic Committee, Colleen Wrenn, laid down a challenge for Utahns ahead of the 2034 Winter Games: Start following the world’s top athletes with disabilities now.

The Paralympics that begin March 6 in Milan-Cortina, Italy, following the Olympics are “a great opportunity” to see the level of competition coming to Utah, Wrenn told the Deseret News during a visit to Utah for meetings with organizers of the 2034 Games.

“We’re going to see a lot of incredible performances. Get your friends excited. Watch the Games. Think about how you can get involved in Para sport and supporting Para athletes in the eight years leading up to the Games, and not just the Games,” she said.

In Italy, spectators will be in the stands for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic that started in 2020 resulted in fans being banned from the last Winter Games, held in Beijing in 2022.

The 2026 Winter Games are spread across northern Italy, providing some spectacular locations for the Paralympics, Wrenn said, citing the “energy and creativity” of Milan and the dramatic peaks of the Dolomites.

Some 600 athletes are expected to compete in 79 medal events across six sports at the 2026 Paralympics, para Alpine skiing, para biathlon, para cross-country skiing, para ice hockey, para snowboard and wheelchair curling.

“We expect that, especially coming after the Olympics, there’s going to be a lot of enthusiasm to be in the venues, to cheer for the athletes,” she said, a chance “to inspire the next generation of athletes.”

The longtime event organizer from California, who joined the German-based IPC nearly five years ago, said one of her goals is to build on what Utahns already know about the Paralympics from the 2002 Winter Games.

There’s a “special opportunity we have here in Utah, given the familiarity, the incredible experiences in 2002,” Wrenn said. Utah’s 2002 organizing committee was the first to stage both a Winter Olympics and Paralympics.

‘Change starts with sport’

It was Italy that was the site of the first Paralympic Games, in 1960 in Rome, but competitions for athletes with disabilities were widely introduced after World War II by a British doctor who was rehabilitating injured veterans.

“While the Paralympic Games today are synonymous with elite sport (and) one of the largest sporting events in the world, one of the most followed sporting events in the world, still, core to our identity, is this idea that change starts with sport,” Wrenn said.

That’s helping to transform the lives of the 1.3 billion people with disabilities around the world, she said, as a catalyst for not just physical infrastructure changes that improve access but also attitudes.

A year after the 2024 Summer Games in Paris, a survey commissioned by the IPC found 73% of more than 15,000 people in 11 different countries thought the Paris Paralympics improved their attitudes toward persons with disabilities.

“What’s amazing about that, of course, is that was not just in Paris, not just in France, but globally,” Wrenn said. “Just through engaging, whether through online or watching the broadcast, the Paralympic Games have that ability to change.”

Since arriving in Utah on Tuesday, she said she’s toured numerous Games venues, including the Utah Olympic Park near Park City and the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center near Midway, and met with Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall as well as the Utah organizing committee.

Her visit, which wrapped up Friday, was a chance to start focusing attention on the Paralympics.

“There’s many years yet to get into the operational details,” Wrenn said, but it’s not too early to “take advantage of this runway and think about opportunities to enhance the Games experience, to build greater awareness and interest in the Paralympic Games and Para sport.”

For her, it was important to talk with the year-old Organizing Committee for the 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games before the Milan-Cortina Games begin “to set the scenes” of what they should be looking at when it comes to the Paralympics.

What Wrenn said she’ll bring back to the IPC from Utah is “just the overwhelming warmth and receptiveness I’ve had from everyone I’ve met. ... The enthusiasm and the passion for the Paralympic Games and the opportunities that they present is very exciting.”

‘New level’ for Paralympics planned in Utah

The Organizing Committee for the 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games is on the same page when it comes to preparing to welcome some 600 to 700 Paralympians to Utah in 2034, CEO Brad Wilson said.

“We’re planning one event. We’re planning the Games of 2034, which include the Olympics and the Paralympics. Those planning processes are underway in full force,” Wilson said, adding organizers want to see Para sport events held in Utah leading up to the Games.

He said discussions about bringing competitions to Utah will get underway during the Milan-Cortina Winter Games. Wilson, a former Utah House speaker, said he will be in Italy for the Olympics and return for the Paralympics.

“One of our ambitions is to take the Paralympics to a new level in every way, whether it’s in fan engagement, whether it’s events leading up to the Games and giving the athletes a terrific experience,” he said, including providing support for Para athlete families.

“We have this athlete family initiative not just for the Olympics, but the Paralympics as well,” Wilson said. “We want those families of Paralympians to know they’ve got a special place here in Utah.”