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The 1988 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event celebrated in and around Calgary, Alberta, Canada from 13 to 28 February 1988. The host was selected in 1981 after having beat Falun, Sweden and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. Most events took place in Calgary, although Alpine skiing took place in Kananaskis and Nordic skiing and biathlon taking place in Canmore. The games were held after the 1988 Winter Paralympics in Innsbruck, the last time the two tournaments were not held in the same city. Fifty-seven nations and 1,423 athletes participated in the games, with five countries making their debut in the Winter Olympics. Super-G made its Olympic debut, while curling, freestyle skiing, short track speed skating and disabled skiing were demonstration sports. Speed skating was held in an indoor rink for the first time and the games were extended to 16 days. Similar to the 1988 Summer Olympics, the Soviet Union and East Germany dominated the events, coming in first and second in the overall medal table. As at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, the only previous games hosted in Canada, the host country failed to produce any gold medals. Matti Nykänen won all three ski jumping events. Yvonne van Gennip won three gold medals in speed skating, setting two world records. Alberto Tomba won two gold medals in alpine skiing. Eddie "The Eagle" Edwards and the Jamaica national bobsled team entered with little experience but gathered massive media attention, resulting in qualification rules for later games. |
