The emblem represents a flower, with each petal representing an athlete practicing a different winter sport. It can also be seen as a snowflake, thus the name "Snowflower" was given to it. |
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| Host city | Nagano, Japan |
|---|---|
| Motto | Coexistence with the Nature |
| Nations participating | 72 |
| Athletes participating | 2,176 (1,389 men, 787 women) |
| Events | 72 in 15 sports |
| Opening ceremony | 7 February |
| Closing ceremony | 22 February |
| Officially opened by | Emperor Akihito |
| Athlete's Oath | Kenji Ogiwara |
| Judge's Oath | Junko Hiramatsu |
| Olympic Torch | Midori Ito |
| Stadium | Olympic Stadium |
The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially the XVIII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 7 to 22 February 1998 in Nagano, Japan. Seventy-two nations and 2,176 participans contested in seven sports and 72 events at 15 venues. The games saw the introduction of Women's ice hockey, curling and snowboarding. National Hockey League players were allowed to participate in the Men's ice hockey.
The host was selected in 1992 preference to Salt Lake City, Östersund, Jaca and Aosta. They were the third Olympic Games and second winter Olympics to be held in Japan, after the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo. The games were succeeded by the 1998 Winter Paralympics from 5 to 14 March.
Bjørn Dæhlie won three gold medals in cross-country skiing, making him the most-winning Winter Olympic competior ever. Alpine skier Hermann Maier survived a fall in the downhill and went on to gold in the super-G and giant slalom. Netherlands won five of the ten speed skating events, including two each by Gianni Romme and Marianne Timmer. Canada beat Denmark in the women's curling final, securing the latter their first Winter Olympic medal ever.
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Other candidate cities for the 1998 Olympics were Aosta, Italy; Jaca, Spain; Östersund, Sweden; and Salt Lake City, United States. The host city selection was held in Birmingham, United Kingdom, on 15 June 1991, at the 97th IOC session. Nagano prevailed over Salt Lake City by just 4 votes.
| 1998 Winter Olympics bidding results[1] | ||||||
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| City | Country | Round 1 | Round 2 (Run-off) | Round 3 | Round 4 | Round 5 |
| Nagano | Japan | 21 | — | 30 | 36 | 46 |
| Salt Lake City | United States | 15 | 59 | 27 | 29 | 42 |
| Östersund | Sweden | 18 | — | 25 | 23 | — |
| Jaca | Spain | 19 | — | 5 | — | — |
| Aosta | Italy | 15 | 29 | — | — | — |
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Nagano
(Host nation is highlighted.)
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Germany | 12 | 9 | 8 | 29 |
| 2 | Norway | 10 | 10 | 5 | 25 |
| 3 | Russia | 9 | 6 | 3 | 18 |
| 4 | Canada | 6 | 5 | 4 | 15 |
| 5 | United States | 6 | 3 | 4 | 13 |
| 6 | Netherlands | 5 | 4 | 2 | 11 |
| 7 | Japan | 5 | 1 | 4 | 10 |
| 8 | Austria | 3 | 5 | 9 | 17 |
| 9 | South Korea | 3 | 1 | 2 | 6 |
| 10 | Italy | 2 | 6 | 2 | 10 |
72 nations participated in the 1998 Winter Olympic Games. The nations Azerbaijan, Kenya, Macedonia, Uruguay, and Venezuela participated in their first Winter Olympic Games.
Articles about Nagano Winter Olympics by nation:
The games were covered by the following broadcasters:
| Preceded by Lillehammer |
Winter Olympics Nagano XVIII Olympic Winter Games (1998) |
Succeeded by Salt Lake City |
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