WAWC - Winter Olympic History

[Rhea]

History of the Winter Olympics

 

Although the Summer Olympics had cemented itself as a major world sporting event, the introduction of the Winter version was delayed for some time by Sweden, which staged its own very successful Nordic Games, held every four or five years from 1901-26.

 

Also the Summer Games had hosted some winter sports prior to their being a separate Winter Olympic Games. At the 1908 and 1920 summer Olympic Games, the program inculded what are now winter Olympic sports of Figure Skating and Ice Hockey. Organizers of the 1916 Summer Games in Berlin planned to introduce a “Skiing Olympia,” featuring nordic events in the Black Forest, but the Games were canceled after the outbreak of World War I in 1914.

 

Despite the objections of International Olympic Committee president Pierre de Coubertin, an 'International Winter Sports Week' (originally called Semaine des Sports d'Hiver) was held at Chamonix in 1924. Two years later, this event was retroactively given the status of the first Olympic Winter Games. After the success of this event, even the Scandinavians, who won 28 of the 43 medals at Chamonix, lifted their objections to future Winter Games.

 

Originally, the tradition was to hold the Winter Games a few months earlier and in a different city than the summer Olympic Games. Beginning in 1994, the Winter Olympic Games were held in completely different years (two years apart) than the summer Games.

 

DID YOU KNOW...Norway holds the most Winter Olympic Medals? Yes they do at 329! The US comes in 2nd with 282 and Germany is 3rd with 228!

 

Do you have a favorite Winter Olympic year or one that stand out the most for you?

[Mashiara Sedai]

I haven't watched more than a snippet or two in years!  As a child--so in the 1990s--I remember watching all the ice skating events.  I guess that was my favorite, by default.  *lol*

[Sooh]

"The decision is Lillyhammer!"

 

1994 were my favorite games. They were held in Lillehammer, 2h from here, and I was 12 years old. It was HUGE. I remember having an olympics sticker book, and a cap filled with pins about the olympics. They even brought the olympic fire to our school and had a torch set up outside the gym where the fire burned for as long as the olympics lasted. 

 

1994 were also the games when the Tonya Harding/Nancy Kerrigan scandal happened. It was the year of vetter and Sissel Kyrkebø and the crown prince lighting the olympic fire and national pride (the positive kind) like never before. 

 

I remember so much from those games, and I have not cared for any olympic games neither before nor after this lol.

 

Snippet from the opening ceremony.

Olympic hymn by Sissel Kyrkebø.

 

 

 

[Gentled Ben]

Hahahahahaha DID YOU KNOW...that I posted "Which country has won the most medals in the Winter Olympics?" as a trivia question before reading your post here? Hahahaha I'll just leave it. They can have a freebie after the tough opening question.

 

Sooh, my city was awarded the 1976 games, but the voters refused to approve a bond measure to help pay for it, so we had to decline the games, which went to Innsbruck, Austria instead. In hindsight, it was probably the right financial decision for the city, but at the time, I was really upset because I thought it would be incredibly cool for my hometown to host an Olympics. Now that we could afford it, the IOC turns a cold shoulder to us, which I suppose is understandable.

[Lessa Nikia]

Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics were by far my favourite. I loved the opening ceremonies maybe not including the tech issue with torch though. Awkward! I also think it was pretty awesome that we broke the record for most gold medals won by the host country that year

[Ryrin]

Sadly, the one that stands out most for me is the Summer Olympics of 1972 when the Israeli athletes were murdered. I was a kid and was leaving Germany with my parents the day it happened. We were at the airport. 

[Rhea]

Well for me it was the 1984 Winter Olympics. I was head over heels in love with Scott Hamilton and he performed so well, doing a back flip on the ice and winning the gold medal. I remember watching it with my parents and recording it on our VCR so I could watch it over and over. haha! 

[Gentled Ben]

6 hours ago, Ryrin said:

Sadly, the one that stands out most for me is the Summer Olympics of 1972 when the Israeli athletes were murdered. I was a kid and was leaving Germany with my parents the day it happened. We were at the airport. 

I didn't realize we were of an age.  

I was 8 and watched it in horror with my parents. That was terrible. I read that Golda Meir gave the order, and Mossad tracked down and killed every one of the terrorists in Black September, though. Every one of them, not that it would bring back a single athlete, but at least they were avenged.

[Gentled Ben]

1 hour ago, Rhea said:

Well for me it was the 1984 Winter Olympics. I was head over heels in love with Scott Hamilton and he performed so well, doing a back flip on the ice and winning the gold medal. I remember watching it with my parents and recording it on our VCR so I could watch it over and over. haha! 

Nadia Comaneci was my crush in 1976 and 1980. I suppose everyone has an Olympic crush at some point.  

[thehumantrashcan]

I was always a big fan of the skiing competitions.  I remember as a kid falling in love with Picabo Street.  The olympics would also get my psyched for skiing as well.  As a kid we made a point of watching both Olympics every year but the winter ones were always our favorite.  That of course led to another crush of Lindsey Vonn.  Us Americans love our female skiers.

Edited January 19, 2018 by thehumantrashcan

[Ryrin]

On 1/19/2018 at 5:56 AM, Gentled Ben said:

I didn't realize we were of an age.  

I was 8 and watched it in horror with my parents. That was terrible. I read that Golda Meir gave the order, and Mossad tracked down and killed every one of the terrorists in Black September, though. Every one of them, not that it would bring back a single athlete, but at least they were avenged.

 

Apparently we are (of a certain age.) I watched German soldiers at the airport. 

[Gentled Ben]

That must have been intense!