Lehi People
Lehi Teen heads to France for Youth Sports Festival at Olympics
Six Utah teens will travel to France to participate in a global youth sports festival as a prelude to the Olympic Games in Paris, and among them is Lehi High School athlete Tyson Adamson. The Festival 24 de Sport dans la Ville will bring together more than 500 young people from 37 countries around the world from July 19 to 28 in Lyon and Paris. Festival 24 will celebrate the values of the Olympic and Paralympic Games and showcase social engagement through sport.
The event is part of a growing partnership between the Salt Lake City-Utah Committee for the Games and Sport dans le Ville, a Paris-based youth sports organization. On July 25, the young Utah delegation will be a part of a festival and workshop in a Paris park, Jardin d’Acclimatation. The day will kick off with a program featuring Olympic champion Lindsey Vonn, 2002 women’s downhill champion Carole Montillet from France, and Utah‘s First Lady Abby Cox.
The First Lady played a key role in the development of the Utah program. Vonn—who lives in Park City, competed in 2002 and went on to win the downhill in 2010—is a part of Utah’s delegation that will present the bid to the full IOC membership on July 24.
“One of the great things about sport is that it brings everyone together, regardless of their background,” said the First Lady. “Sport can be a catalyst to energize communities and foster positive connections. That’s what I see in these young ambassadors from Utah.”
The Utah Youth Forum delegation includes Tyson Adamson, Lehi; Raymond Soto, Salt Lake City; Harun Ahmed, Salt Lake City; Victoria Rosales, Park City; Jazmin Solis, Mount Pleasant; and Ellie Finlonson, Moroni.
The group will be managed by Delegation Leader Chief Sara Bowles, Herriman, a BYU graduate, longtime speedskating coach, and now Membership and Safe Sport manager for US Speedskating; and Jacob Roberts, Lehi, a BYU graduate who works with the Timpanogos Speed Skating Club, which he started. He was US Speedskating’s Volunteer Coach of the Year in 2022.
“A cornerstone of our bid has been to ensure we are elevating our youth,” said SLC-UT 2034 Board Chair Catherine Raney Norman, a four-time Olympic speedskater. “This group embodies our principles of sport and community. It will be an extraordinary opportunity for them to connect with peers from around the world who share their passions. Even more importantly, they will bring these enriching experiences back to Utah, inspiring others and uplifting our communities for years to come.”
The group will first travel to Lyon, part of the France 2030 bid, before heading to Paris. In addition to the festivities on July 25, the delegation will also have an opportunity to watch the opening ceremony on July 26 along the Seine.
Private donations supported the group through the SLC-UT 2034 Committee for the Games and the Project 29 initiative, which aims to unite sport and community. Both the Larry H. Miller Group and Smith Entertainment group are providing Utah sports memorabilia, including Big League Utah baseballs and sports T-shirts, for the Utah delegation to give out in France.
A junior at Lehi High School, Adamson plays high school golf and lacrosse, as well as travel team baseball. He hopes to play college golf.
“I love the Olympics. I can not wait to be there to meet people from all over the world. I am so grateful for the opportunity to get a better feel of the Olympic Spirit,” said Adamson.
