1994 Winter Olympics — 17th edition of Winter Olympics, in Lillehammer, Norway
The 1994 Lillehammer Winter Olympics were the first Winter Games held separately from the Summer Olympics, marking a new scheduling era for international sport.
Key Facts
- Participating nations
- 67 National Olympic Committees
- Athletes
- 1,737
- Events
- 61 across 6 sports
- Spectators
- Almost 2 million
- Top gold medals (country)
- Russia, 11 gold medals
- Most medals overall
- Norway, 26 total medals
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Following IOC calendar reforms in 1986, the Winter and Summer Olympics were staggered to alternate every two years. Lillehammer had lost the 1992 Winter Games bid to Albertville but was awarded the 1994 Games in September 1988, setting the stage for the first Winter Olympics held in a non-Summer-Olympics year.
From 12 to 27 February 1994, the XVII Olympic Winter Games were held in and around Lillehammer, Norway, involving 1,737 athletes from 67 nations competing across 61 events in 6 sports. Notable performances included Johann Olav Koss winning three speed skating golds, Oksana Baiul claiming figure skating gold, and 13-year-old Kim Yun-mi becoming the youngest Olympic gold medalist.
The Games drew nearly two million spectators and were the first to operate under the Olympic Truce. They established a lasting two-year alternating cycle between Summer and Winter Olympics. Russia topped the medal table, and the event gained additional notoriety from the assault on figure skater Nancy Kerrigan, which drew global media attention.
Result
at Lillehammer, Norway