The First Winter Olympics Open

Setting the scene

Figure skating and ice hockey had appeared at Summer Games, but winter sports advocates pushed for a separate festival where snow and ice events could dominate the program.

What happened

The International Winter Sports Week opened in Chamonix, France, on January 25, 1924, with athletes from sixteen nations; the IOC later retroactively designated it the first Winter Olympics.

Why it still matters

Chamonix launched a parallel Olympic tradition that now alternates every two years with the Summer Games. Memorable detail: the 1924 organizers called the event an international winter sports week, not yet "Olympics."

Background

The Games were retroactively named Winter Olympics in 1926.