When did the Winter Olympics begin?
The Winter Olympics began in 1924.
The first Winter Olympics was held in Chamonix, France. Organized by the French Olympic Committee, the competition was held from January 25th to February 5th, 1924. At that time, the Winter and the Summer Olympics were held in the same year. Both events were held the same year until 1992 when the Winter Olympics began to be organized in the second year after the Summer Olympics. The games have been held regularly every four years, except for 1940 and 1944 when they were interrupted because of World War II.
The 1924 Winter Olympics witnessed 16 nations taking part in the tournament. The tournament witnessed 258 athletes participating in five sports, divided into nine disciplines. Barring the United States and Canada, the rest of the participating countries were from Europe. The sports included Bobsleigh, Curling, Ice Hockey, Skating, Figure Skating, Speed Skating, Nordic Skiing, Military Patrol, Cross-country Skiing, Nordic Combined, and Ski Jumping.
The sports were held at three venues. La Piste de Bobsleigh des Pellerins hosted Bobsleigh. Ski Jumping and Nordic combined were held at Le Tremplin Olympique du Mont. The rest of the games were held at Stade Olympique de Chamonix.
Norway topped the table with 17 medals. Of these four were Gold, seven Silver, and six Bronze. Finland came second with 11 medals. The other nations which won medals were Austria, Switzerland, the United States, Great Britain, Sweden, Canada, France, and Belgium.
Since the first Winter Olympics, the tournament has undergone several changes and has also expanded. The later editions have seen the addition of new sports such as freestyle skiing, alpine skiing, snowboarding, luge, skeleton, short track, and speed skating. Meanwhile, Military Patrol as a sport has been discontinued, and has evolved to ‘Biathlon.’
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