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Show FEBRUARY 1997 OLYMPICS Little De By Christopher Smart rangling over a site for crosscountry skiing for the 2002 Winter Games pitted environmentalists against skiers in a strange political struggle that in the end may have nixed Parleys Canyon as an Olympic venue. The tumult over the site selection has also become a burr under the saddle of the Salt Lake Olympic Organizing Committee (SLOC), which wants to minimize public distractions and get down to the daunting task of it will keep looking for a suitable venue. Still, Tom Welch, SLOC president, says the committee will leave the door open to Little Dell near Parleys Canyon, in the event no other site is found. Door open or not, the SLOC dropped the site suddenly Jan. 29 when the committee realized it could not predict whether environmentalists would file suit, hosting the world’s premier winter sports fest and rocketing Utah into the pages of sports history, not to mention the consciousness of every business group looking to relocate from Los Angeles, New York or Miami. All the other sites for 2002 Winter Olympic events have now been selected. But for crosscountry skiing and biathlon, the sport that combines skiing with marksmanship, the SLOC says say insiders. If Little Dell was selected and one of the individuals or groups sued, the completion of the track in time for the Olympics would be a question mark. Beyond that, because Little Dell is prime watershed, the federal Army Corps of Engineers . Eaige would Continued on page 9 — IKAGS RESTAURANT SUSHI BAR Traditional Japanese ‘Food Designed For ‘Today's Gourmet. Salt Lake City 67 West 100 South '801.328.0929 : Park City '738 Main Street ‘801 -655.7100 The warm Goldener Galleria floral & Design ) on Historic ¢ Guaranteed Fresh comfortable Restaurant a delightfulemountain City’s Favorite and Hirsch serves award winning cuisine in 580 Main * Galleria Mall + Park City sark setting. Winter Dining Hours Florist Breakfast Main ¢ 7:00 Lunch °41:30_a%m. Flowers Aprés e European Gardens Ski ¢ 2:30 - 9:30 a.m. -"2:30%p.m. - 6:00 p.m : j 'F Dinner ¢ 6:00 - 10:00 p.m. 649-2600 World Wide Delivery sea photos by Fred Hayes Environmentalists argued that the fragile eco-systems at Little Dell would be harmed by extensive use. 7 Days a Week eS PAGE 8 s |