1994 Olympics

The 1994 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVII Olympic Winter Games, was a multi-sport winter event held from 12th to 27th February 1994 in and around Lillehammer, Norway. In 1992, Lillehammer had not won the bid for the event, losing to Albertville. The 1994 Winter Olympics were awarded to Lillehammer in 1988, after crushing Anchorage, USA; Östersund, Sweden; and Sofia, Bulgaria. Lillehammer is the northernmost town ever to host Winter Games and Olympics overall. The Games was the first to be held in a year other than the Summer Olympics, the first and only to be played two years since the previous winter games. The Games were the second Winter Olympics held in Norway, after the 1952 Winter Olympics in Oslo, and the fourth Nordic Olympics, the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden, and the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, Finland. While there were few events in Lillehammer, there was cycling in Hamar, numerous ice hockey matches were held in Gjøvik, while there was alpine skiing in Øyer and Ringebu. 67 nations and 1,737 athletes competed in 6 disciplines and 61 events. Fourteen nations made their Olympic Winter debuts, nine of them were former Soviet republics. The Games also saw more stringent classification criteria being introduced, raising the number of underperforming athletes arriving from countries with warm weather. New events included two separate distances in short track speed skating and aerials, while figure skating was moved indoors. Over two million people spectated the games, the first to witness the Olympic truce in place. From 10th to 19th March, the 1994 Winter Paralympics preceded the games. Manuela Di Centa and Lyubov Yegorova led women's cross-country skiing, winning five and four medals, respectively. A crowd of over 100,000 saw Italy beat Norway by 0.4 seconds on the men's 4 around 10 km relay Vreni Schneider has won a full medal series in alpine skiing while Norway has taken a gold sweep in the men's combination. Before the match, Shane Stant, an associate of Tonya Harding, had clubbed Nancy Kerrigan but managed to take silver in the ladies ' singles. Once Kim Yoon-Mi, 13, became the first Olympic gold medalist ever to win, Johann Olav Koss won three speed skating competitions. Sweden has beat Canada in a thrilling penalty shootout in the ice hockey final. Russia won the bulk of events with 11 gold medals while Norway won the highest number of 26 medals. The opening ceremony was held at a ski jumping slope, Lysgårdsbakken. Artistic resources have been given for a variety of Norwegian history, including Sami joik, Telemark skiing, fiddlers and folk dancing, versions of traditional weddings and their processions, and Norse mythology vetter. Following speeches by Heiberg and IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch, the games were officially proclaimed opened by King Harald V. Before lighting the cauldron the Olympic Flame was to be skied down the skijump. This job initially depended on Ole Gunnar Fidjestøl, but after being injured in a practise jump, his back-up Stein Gruben earned the distinction. The Cauldron was illuminated by Crown Prince Haakon Magnus. Vegard Ulvang gave the athletes the Olympic oaths, and the officials the Kari Kåring. The games were spread across ten venues in five municipalities across two counties, Oppland and Hedmark. Mjøsa Bay is both based on Lillehammer, with a population of 25,000, and Hamar and Gjøvik, each of which have a population of 27,000. Located 45 and 54 km south of Lillehammer, Gjøvik and Hamar respectively. Hunderfossen is located 15 kilometres north of Lillehammer but is within the municipality. Located 18 and 50 kilometres north of Lillehammer in the Gudbrandsdalen Valley, Øyer and Ringebu, all of which have a population of just under 5000. Lillehammer had four stadiums, Hamar had two stadiums, and Hunderfossen, Gjøvik, Øyer and Ringebu each had one venue. Lysgårdsbakken in Lillehammer boasts hills that hop twin skis. The big hill is 138 in size while the regular hill is 100 in size and 90 in critical stage. In addition to the ski jumping events, the hill has space for 35,000 fans, and hosted the opening and closing ceremonies.