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Home | Olympic games | 1956 Winter Olympics
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Thirty-two nations-the largest number of participating Winter Olympic countries to that point-competed in the four disciplines and twenty-four events. The Soviet Union made its Winter Olympics debut and won more medals than any nation. Austrian Toni Sailer became the first person to sweep all three alpine skiing events in a single Olympics. The figure skating competition was held outdoors for the last time at these Games. Logistically, the only problem encountered was a lack of snow at the alpine skiing events. To remedy this, the Italian army transported large amounts of snow to ensure the courses were adequately covered. Politics did not impact the 1956 Winter Games as it had done at the Summer Games in Melbourne, Australia, where the Soviet response to the Hungarian uprising and the Suez War caused many nations to boycott the Games. The Cortina Olympics were the first Winter Olympics televised to a multi-national audience. Since Communist countries had superior technology, western European countries like Finland and West Germany were only able to receive Communist broadcasts of the Games. This was a significant win for the Soviets in the propaganda front of the Cold War. |
