Note to the media: Should information on the lighting of the Olympic Cauldron change, a media advisory providing additional details will be issued on Thursday, Feb. 9.

Jan. 24, 2006- In recognition of the XX Olympic Winter Games, which will be held Feb. 10 through 26, in Torino, Italy, Utah’s own Olympic Cauldron will be lit during the evening hours on Feb. 10, 11 and 12 and will burn until 11 p.m. The University is extending a special invitation to the public to visit the Olympic Cauldron Park and the Salt Lake 2002 Visitors Center, located on the south end of the U’s Rice-Eccles Stadium, 500 S. 1400 E. The Park will have extended hours, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 10, and Saturday, Feb. 11, and will be open from noon until 8 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 12.

The lighting of the Olympic Cauldron on Friday, Feb. 10, will not include a formal ceremony as it is scheduled to correspond with the lighting of the flame at the end of the Opening Ceremonies in Torino. The Opening Ceremonies are scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. in Torino, which is 12 p.m. Mountain Standard Time (MST). Although the exact time of the lighting is not known, it is anticipated that it will be at approximately 2 p.m. MST.

A pin trading event, free and open to the public, will take place on Friday, Feb. 10, from noon until 8 p.m., in the Visitors Center. Members of the community are encouraged to bring and exchange pins.

Admission to the Park is free. In recognition of this anniversary occasion, admission to the Salt Lake 2002 Theater will also be free Feb. 10 through 12. The public is invited to view the Hoberman Arch and the cauldron, designed by Mark Fuller, University graduate and CEO of WET Design. In the Visitors Center, guests will enjoy murals, photographic exhibits, video footage and a short, commemorative film, which features highlights from the Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Winter Games.

For more information, please visit www.saltlake2002.com/main.html.