U.S. Olympic Museum changes name to U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum

Organizational name change reflects all athletes of Team USA

Colorado Springs, Colo., July 1, 2019 -- The United States Olympic Museum and Home of the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame announced today that it is formally changing its name to the United States Olympic and Paralympic Museum.

"Our name change is an outward expression of an important truth that we’ve known since the very inception of this organization," said Chris Liedel, chief executive officer of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum. "We are creating an accessible, inclusive museum that will immerse visitors in the journeys of all Team USA athletes, and we are proud that we will also be the home of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Hall of Fame."

The board and staff of the museum is implementing the name change immediately, as the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum continues to take shape in southwest downtown Colorado Springs. The city is widely considered to be the center of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic movements.

"What sets this museum apart is how we’ve taken all abilities into account in the design of the building and the development of the interactive exhibits," said Michelle Dusserre Farrell, U.S. Gymnastics Olympian (1984). "This name change makes that commitment even more official."

"I am delighted with the recent decision to include Paralympic in the formal name of the museum that will capture the amazing and inspiring stories of Team USA athletes. This is a clear demonstration that Paralympic athletes are an integral part of the rich narrative of America’s Olympic and Paralympic movements," said four-time Alpine Skiing Paralympian and Hall of Fame inductee Sarah Will.

Visitors will have the opportunity to learn more about all summer and winter Olympic and Paralympic sports within the museum when it opens in the spring of 2020. Exhibit designers are planning several interactive areas where visitors will have the opportunity to simulate the experience of training and competition on the international stage.

About the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum

The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum and Home of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Hall of Fame, which is under construction in downtown Colorado Springs, Colo., is set to open in the spring of 2020. It will be a dynamic tribute to the nation’s Olympic and Paralympic movements with inclusive, immersive and interactive exhibits to ignite the athletic spirit and inspire generations to come. The 60,000-square-foot building will embody the forward-looking values of Team USA, with highly interactive exhibit space, a state-of-the-art theater, gift shop, café and broadcast studio. Learn more at usolympicmuseum.org or on social media at facebook.com/usolympicmuseum, twitter.com/usolympicmuseum and instagram.com/usolympicmuseum.

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