Winter Olympic Games
The Winter Olympic Games were first held in 1924 in Chamonix, France. In the organization, 16 countries competed with approximately 250 athletes in 16 different events.
At that time, women were only allowed to do figure skating. Women did not compete in other sports. Originally named Winter Sports Week, the event was a huge success, with 10,000 spectators paying an entry fee. This situation prompted the International Olympic Committee to change the name of the organization.
The United States has hosted the Winter Olympic Games four times since 1924.
After the USA, the country that hosted the most was France (3). The chronological order of the Winter Olympic Games is as follows:
1924: Chamonix, France | January 25 - February 4
1928: St. Moritz, Switzerland | 11-19 February
1932: Lake Placid, New York | February 4-15
1936: Garmisch Partenkirchen, Germany | 6-16 February
1940/1944: Olympic Games not held due to WWII
1948: San Moritz, Switzerland | January 30 - February 8
1952: Oslo, Norway | 14-25 February
1956: Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy | January 26-February 5
1960: Squaw Valley, California | 18-28 February
1964: Innsbruck, Austria | 29 January - 9 February
1968: Grenoble, France | 6-18 February
1972: Sapporo, Japan | February 3-13
1976: Innsbruck, Austria | February 4-15
1980: Lake Placid, New York | 14-23 February
1984: Sarajevo, Yugoslavia | 7-19 February
1988: Calgary, Canada | 13-28 February
1992: Albertville, France | 8-23 February
1994: Lillehammer, Norway | 12-27 February
1998: Nagano, Japan | 7-22 February
2002: Salt Lake City, Utah | 8-24 February
2006: Turin, Italy | 10-26 February
2010: Vancouver, Canada | 12-28 February
2014: Sochi, Russia | 7-23 February
2018: Pyeongchang, South Korea | February 9-25
There are many successful athletes who have made their name known to the whole world by showing outstanding success in the Winter Olympic Games.
For example, female cross-country skier Marit Bjørgen from Norway won 15 medals, eight of which were gold, between 2002 and 2018, making her the athlete with the most medals at the Winter Olympics. Representing East Germany, skater Katarina Witt won gold medals in Sarajevo in 1984 and Calgary in 1988. Similarly, American speed skater Bonnie Blair became the only woman to win the same race (500 meters) in three consecutive Winter Olympics.
Since there was no snow in 1964, the soldiers carried snow from the mountains to the tracks
The 1964 Winter Olympics were held in Innsbruck, Austria. This region, which is normally very cold, did not receive any snowfall that year. Lack of snow was threatening the Olympic Games. Thereupon, the Austrian army climbed the snow-covered mountains and carried 50,000 cubic meters of snow and ice to the ski slopes.
West and East Germany competed together three times at the Winter Olympics
The two countries on opposite sides of the Iron Curtain; He competed together as a united Germany team at both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games in 1956, 1960 and 1964.
Norway still dominates the historical medal standings
Although Norway is a very small country, it holds the Winter Olympics medal record. The country currently holds 329 medals, including 118 gold, 111 silver and 100 bronze. On the other hand, countries such as Austria and Liechtenstein are among the countries that won more medals at the Winter Olympics compared to the Summer Games.
There is only one person who has won gold medals at both the Winter and Summer Olympics
American Eddie Eagen won the gold medal in the light heavyweight boxing event at the 1920 Summer Games. Eddie Eagen was also a member of the four-man sled team at the 1932 Winter Olympics. A historic event took place when Eddie's team also won a gold medal. Thus, Eddie Eagen became the only person to win gold medals at both the Winter and Summer Olympics.