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The Winter Olympic Games (French: Jeux olympiques d'hiver) [a] is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were held in Chamonix, France.
- The First Winter Olympics
- Winter Olympics Sites
- American Figure Skaters Dominate
- Other Notable American Athletes at The Winter Olympics
- Notable International Athletes at The Winter Olympics
- The Americans' 'Miracle on Ice'
- Notable Winter Olympics
- Sources
In 1924, the first Winter Olympicswere held in Chamonix, France, with approximately 250 athletes competing for 16 countries in 16 events. Women were only allowed to participate in figure skating (11 competed). Other events included bobsled, cross-country skiing, curling, hockey, military patrol, Nordic combined, ski jumping and speed skating. The e...
1924: Chamonix, France | January 25-February 4 1928: St. Moritz, Switzerland | February 11-19 1932: Lake Placid, New York | February 4-15 1936: Garmisch Partenkirchen, Germany | February 6-16 1940/1944: No Olympics because of World War II 1948: San Moritz, Switzerland | January 30-February 8 1952: Oslo, Norway | February 14-25 1956: Cortina d'Ampez...
With 305 medals, second only to Norway, the United States has fared well at the Games, especially in women's figure skating. Notable American gold medalists include Peggy Fleming in 1968 (Grenoble, France), Dorothy Hamillin 1976 (Innsbruck, Austria) and Kristi Yamaguchi in 1992 (Albertville, France). At the 1998 Games, Tara Lipinski (15 years, 255 ...
American speed skating stars include Bonnie Blair, who competed at the 1984, 1988, 1992 and 1994 Games. She became the only female speed skater to win the same event (500 meters) in three successive Winter Olympics. Eric Heiden won all five of his men's speed skating races in 1980, setting four Olympic records and a world record. Celebrated speed s...
Female cross-country skier Marit Bjørgen of Norway won 15 medals from 2002-2018, including eight gold, to become the most decorated athlete in the Winter Olympics. Fellow Norweigan Bjørn Dæhlie—the top male Olympic Nordic skier of all time—earned 12 medals from 1992 and 1998, eight gold. Figure skater Katarina Wittof East Germany won gold in Saraje...
In what's often called the greatest moment in American sports history, the U.S. men’s hockey teambeat the heavily favored Soviet Union, 4-3, on February 22, 1980, in the semifinals at the Lake Placid Winter Olympics. The U.S. went on to defeat Finland to win the gold medal. The Americans' victory was dubbed the "Miracle on Ice"—after broadcaster Al...
No Winter Olympics were held in 1940 or 1944 because of World War II. The United States has hosted the Winter Olympics four times: Lake Placid (1932), Squaw Valley (1960), Lake Placid (1980) and Salt Lake City (2002). In 1970, Denverwas awarded the 1976 Winter Olympic Games, but Colorado voters blocked the event, leading the Mile High City to withd...
Biography.com for Peggy Fleming and Dorothy Hamillinformation NBC New York: U.S. history of hosting the Winter Olympics New York Times: "Amid Blizzard, Cronkite Helped Make History." Olympics.com for information on Marit Bjorgen, Bonnie Blair, Eddie Edwards, Sonja Henie, Ted Ligety, Mikaela Shiffrin, Picabo Street, Lindsey Vonn, Shaun White. Olymed...
Feb 2, 2022 · Amid the Beijing Olympics, you might be curious about past Winter Olympics sites. Get the history of past locations, from the first Winter Games to 2022.
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4 days ago · The Soviet Union made its Winter Games debut and was the most successful country, claiming 16 medals, including a gold in the ice hockey competition. The Soviets’ defeat of the Canadians, the reigning champions in the sport, marked the beginning of Soviet domination of international ice hockey.
- Chamonix 1924. Initially known as the “Winter Sports Week of the VIII Olympiad”, Chamonix 1924 was officially recognised as the first Olympic Winter Games in 1926.
- St Moritz 1928 and 1948. Renowned for its winter sports facilities, St Moritz was chosen to host the 1928 Olympic Winter Games, elevating the resort’s global profile.
- Garmisch- Partenkirchen 1936. The Zugspitze, the highest peak in the German Alps, served as the backdrop for the fourth edition of the Olympic Winter Games, which were hosted by the newly combined town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen.
- Cortina 1956. The Games significantly boosted Cortina d’Ampezzo’s appeal as a high-quality tourist destination and contributed to a surge in visitors. The town’s population is about 6,000 in the off-season but swells to 50,000 during the winter months.
5 days ago · Origins of the Olympic Winter Games, The first organized international competition involving winter sports was introduced just five years after the birth of the modern Olympics in 1896. This competition, the Nordic Games, included only athletes from the Scandinavian countries and was held.
…a brief history of the Winter Olympic Games and past Canadian Games, with tables featuring International Olympic Committee (IOC) presidents, sites of the Olympic Games through the years, and medal winners of 2006; a colourful photo gallery; and daily highlights of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.
