Romney rescued the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake

The bid to host the 2002 Winter Olympics was won by Salt Lake City in 1995. However, the organizing organization was charged with buying IOC members' votes in 1998 in order to win the bid. The two men in charge of the organizing committee quickly announced their resignation, and several others did as well. The fact that Mitt Romney was hired to lead and restructure the committee is an intriguing truth about him. He was able to regain the sponsors' confidence and make sure the event went on to become one of the most prosperous Olympic Games ever. Although independent investigations into the Salt Lake City Olympic controversy concluded that nothing technically criminal had occurred, steps were made to regulate future Olympic bid-related activity.

It was a crucial time for Romney, who had returned to Bain following his unsuccessful 1994 attempt to replace Massachusetts Senator Edward Kennedy. His political career was revived and thrust into the national limelight by the Salt Lake assignment. Additionally, it was a launching pad for his successful 2002 run for governor. That achievement is cited by the Romney campaign as a shining illustration of his renowned managerial prowess. Turnaround: Crisis, Leadership and the Olympic Games is a book that Romney published about the subject. Romney's Olympic effort is praised by those who worked closely with him in Salt Lake City. One of them, Mike Leavitt, the former governor of Utah who chose Romney to run SLOC, is currently Romney's campaign manager.