It’s time to celebrate! The Olympic flame is finally lit at Milan San Siro Stadium and the competitions are involving thousands of athletes from all over the world.
The first Olympic Winter Games were held in 1924 in the French Alps. Over 10 days, the host town of Chamonix brought together athletes from 16 nations. The event was initially an integral part of the Olympic Games Paris 1924, and was known as the “Winter Sports Week of the VIII Olympiad”. In 1926, it was retroactively recognised as first edition of the Olympic Winter Games. The world fell in love with the spectacular beauty of the mountains and the magic of winter sport.
CLASS ACTIVITY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=keih-Gv2oWE
Quiz
1. In what year and city were the first ever Winter Olympic Games held?
A) 1928, St. Moritz
B) 1924, Chamonix
C) 1932, Lake Placid
D) 1920, Antwerp
2. Which of these sports was part of the original program in 1924?
A) Snowboarding
B) Freestyle Skiing
C) Figure Skating
D) Short Track Speed Skating
3. The “Miracle on Ice” is one of the most famous moments in sports history. In which Winter Olympics did this occur?
A) 1976 Innsbruck
B) 1984 Sarajevo
C) 1960 Squaw Valley
D) 1980 Lake Placid
4. Which athlete achieved the feat of winning five gold medals in a single Winter Olympics (1980)?
A) Eric Heiden
B) Michael Phelps
C) Bjørn Dæhlie
D) Usain Bolt
5. In what year did the Winter Olympics shift to a different four-year cycle than the Summer Olympics?
A) 1988
B) 1992
C) 1994
D) 2000
6.Which city became the first in history to host both a Summer and a Winter Olympic Games?
A) Tokyo
B) Paris
C) Beijing
D) Salt Lake City
7. Which “extreme” sport joined the Olympic program in 1998, bringing a new energy to the Games?
A) Snowboarding
B) Curling
C) Bobsleigh
D) Ski Jumping
8. The 1988 Calgary Games became famous for which underdog story?
A) The first Brazilian Ski team
B) The Jamaican Bobsled team and Eddie “The Eagle” Edwards
C) The Miracle on Ice
D) The debut of professional NHL players
9.Why were the Winter Olympics not held in 1940 or 1944?
A) Global Economic Depression
B) Lack of participating nations
C) World War II
D) Extreme weather conditions
10. Who holds the record for the most total medals won by a single athlete at the Winter Olympics?
A) Shaun White
B) Marit Bjørgen
C) Yuzuru Hanyu
D) Lindsey Vonn
Answer Key
B (1924, Chamonix)
C (Figure Skating)
D (1980 Lake Placid)
A (Eric Heiden)
C (1994 – The Lillehammer Games)
C (Beijing)
A (Snowboarding)
B (Jamaican Bobsled / Eddie the Eagle)
C (World War II)
B (Marit Bjørgen – 15 medals)
For decades, the Winter and Summer Games were held in the same year; however, in 1994, the schedule was shifted so that they would alternate every two years, a change that began with the Lillehammer Games. Over the last century, the event has expanded from a small gathering of 258 athletes from 16 nations to a global spectacle featuring nearly 3,000 athletes from over 90 countries, reflecting both technological advancement in sports equipment and a growing global passion for snow and ice disciplines.
At the very beginning, in Chamonix, the sports included in the Winter Olympics were only 5:
- Bobsleigh
- Curling
- Ice Hockey
- Nordic skiing
- Skating
CLASS ACTIVITY
EXAMPLE
SKATES, BLADES, RINK, ICE, TO GLIDE….
Over the last century, the Winter Olympic Games have massively evolved by embracing the “extreme” and the modern. The 1990s marked a major turning point with the inclusion of snowboarding and freestyle skiing, shifting the focus toward a younger, global audience. Additionally, gender equality has reshaped the program. At the first Winter Olympic Games in Chamonix in 1924, there were only 11 women participants out of the total 258 competitors. In fact there was only two events for women, the women’s figure skating and mixed pairs. Women athletes could compete in only figure skating until 1948 when skiing was opened up as a competitive sport for women. Today, the Games continue to expand and evolve considering new sports and disciplines.
CLASS ACTIVITY
Winter sports are directly related to climate change since climate change is fundamentally altering the “playing field” for winter athletes in several ways.
In the face of this immense challenge, the Olympic Winter Games are adapting, and are changing fast. With the reforms of Olympic Agenda 2020 and Olympic Agenda 2020+5, the IOC has reinvented the Olympic Games and the Olympic Winter Games to adapt to the times we live in. […] Today, Olympic hosts are not required to adapt to the Games; the Games must adapt to the hosts.
CLASS ACTIVITY
Deabate: Milano Cortina 2026 and sustainability.
Whether it is for competitions, sustainability or rumors, Winter Olympics always mark a milestone in the social, economic and cultural environment of the host country. For sure they are a great possibility for ESL teachers as well to practice vocabulary and grammar dealing at the same time with current affairs.
