Utah’s Olympics have a new name and logo. Not everyone’s cheering.

What’s in a name? When it comes to the official title of the 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Games, not Salt Lake City.

At an event held Monday at the Salt Lake City International Airport to celebrate 3,000 days until the opening ceremony, local Olympics organizers announced the official name of the 2034 Winter Games and unveiled a new logo. Instead of adhering to the moniker used during the International Olympic Committee’s bid process — Salt Lake City-Utah 2034 — they opted for something considerably less verbose:

Utah 2034.

Dropping Salt Lake City from the name will make the event more inclusive, said Brad Wilson, CEO of the 2034 organizing committee. He noted that the footprint of the sporting events spans 13 venues in five counties.

“We really want everyone in Utah to feel like they’re a part of Team 2034,” Wilson said, “whether they live in our amazing capital city or whether they live in Vernal or Layton.”

Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall said she wants the 2034 Games to “uplift the state” Yet, of her city’s exclusion from the new name, she said: “It hurts.”

“I don’t think anyone expected a name change,” she added, “because it’s not a typical thing to do.”

Salt Lake City was synonymous with Utah’s first Olympics, which were branded Salt Lake City 2002. Their success also played a key factor in the IOC’s decision to award the state a second Games and even to mull Utah’s inclusion in discussions of a future Winter Olympics rotation. Since the 2034 Olympics will reuse most of the same venues as its predecessor, Salt Lake City will again be at the event’s epicenter. It is expected to host medal events in hockey, curling and big air skiing and snowboarding. It will also be the site of the medals plaza and the opening and closing ceremonies.

“Another part that this doesn’t change is the fact that Salt Lake City is an Olympic community. We’re an official Olympic city,” Mendenhall said, noting that is an official IOC designation.

“We have been, and we always will be.”

Salt Lake County’s mayor shared Mendenhall’s consternation over the name change. In addition to the events held in Salt Lake City, the county is expected to host figure skating and both long track and short track speedskating.

“I think the switch is unfortunate given the Salt Lake brand is what the world knows,” said county mayor Jenny Wilson in a statement to The Salt Lake Tribune. “Why would we distance ourselves from the success of the 2002 Games through a name change?”

The IOC opened the door to statewide branding in 2014 with the adoption of the “Olympic Agenda 2020.” The charter established new, and presumably more sustainable, guidelines for selecting Olympic hosts. That included the ability to accept host bids from regions or multiple cities rather than a single city. In 2019, the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics in Italy became the first Games awarded under this new format. They will be held in four clusters between Feb. 6-22. The 2030 Winter Games have been awarded to the French Alps.

In addition to the name change, which received the approval of the International Olympic Committee, local organizers unveiled a new transition logo. It is not the official logo — at least not yet, since that can’t be adopted until 2029, per IOC rules. However, it will be displayed throughout the city until about 2030, Brad Wilson said. That includes a 12-foot-tall sign unveiled Monday near the airport’s baggage claim.

Plus, in a coup for local organizers, merchandise branded with the Utah 2034 and UT34 wordmarks went on sale Monday online and at the Utah Olympic Park in Park City.

Utah was not supposed to be able to start domestic marketing efforts until 2029, after the expiration of the marketing rights for the Los Angeles 2028 Summer Games. However, local organizers struck a deal with officials from LA28 and the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee to begin those sales years in advance.

LA28 will receive a share of the sales proceeds as part of the arrangement. Brad Wilson said the motivation for selling branded T-shirts, bags and other trinkets now is not to raise money but rather to further stoke the buzz around the upcoming Games.

“I don’t know if we’re budgeting a dime of revenue from this program,” Wilson said. “We will generate revenue. But, this is all about one thing, which is fan and brand engagement and building excitement for our Games.”

The logo and wordmark may change after 2029, Wilson said, but the name will not.

Mendenhall said when she first saw the committee’s idea for the wordmark months ago, she negotiated to have “Salt Lake City” included under the word “Utah” or the “UT” abbreviation. She said she hopes that opens the door for other host cities to be able to put their name there when the logo is used in conjunction with an event in their communities.

Wilson said the addition of “Salt Lake City” in some uses of the logo helps tie together the state’s Olympic past and future.

“We wanted,” he said, “to have the brand and positive memories from 2002 to be part of our structure.”

Even if the Utah 2034 name does not elicit more buy-in from Utahns outside of the Salt Lake Valley as intended, one marketing expert said it is still strong from a branding perspective.

“Generally, I think shorter is better,” said Promothesh Chatterjee, a University of Utah marketing professor. “And, as you know, the same is true for brand recall.”

Another benefit, Chatterjee said, is that the name plays into the reputation that Utah already has as a bastion of sports and outdoor recreation. As for whether dropping Salt Lake City from the name distances the positive connection with the 2002 Olympics, he said it might. But then again, those Games were more than two decades ago.

“Most of the younger folks would probably not have been born by then,” he said. “It probably doesn’t matter to them.”