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The 1948 Winter Olympics, officially known as the V Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated in 1948 in St. Moritz, Switzerland. The Games were the first to be celebrated after World War II; it had been 12 years since the last Winter Games in 1936. From the selection of a host city in a neutral country, to the exclusion of Japan and Germany, the political atmosphere of the post-war world was inescapable during the Games. The organizing committee faced several challenges due to the financial and human resources consumed by the war.

Bidding[]

Voting results for the 1948 Winter Olympic Games
City Country Round 1
St. Moritz Switzerland Internal selection
Lake Placid United States

There were 28 nations that marched in the opening ceremonies on January 30, 1948. Nearly 670 athletes competed in 22 events in four sports. The Games also featured two demonstration sports: military patrol, which later became the biathlon, and winter pentathlon, which was discontinued after these Games. Notable performances were turned in by figure skaters Dick Button and Barbara Ann Scott and skier Henri Oreiller. Most of the athletic venues were already in existence from the first time St. Moritz hosted the Winter Games in 1928. All of the venues were outdoors, which meant the Games were heavily dependent on favorable weather conditions. Chile, Denmark, Iceland, South Korea, and Lebanon all made their Winter Olympic debut at these Games. Three countries, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland, tied for the most medals won with ten medals each.

Medal table[]

Rank Country Gold Silver Bronze Total
1 Norway 4 3 3 10
1 Sweden 4 3 3 10
3 Switzerland 3 4 3 10
4 United States 3 4 2 9
5 France 2 1 2 5
6 Canada 2 0 1 3
7 Austria 1 3 4 8
8 Finland 1 3 2 6
9 Belgium 1 1 0 2
10 Italy 1 0 0 1
11 Czechoslovakia 0 1 0 1
11 Hungary 0 1 0 1
13 Great Britain 0 0 2 2

Links[]

Preceded by
Berlin 1936
Olympics
1948
Succeeded by
London 1948
Preceded by
Garmish-Partenkirchen 1936
Winter Olympics
1948
Succeeded by
Oslo 1952
Olympic Games
Summer Olympic Games
Athens 1896Paris 1900St. Louis 1904Athens 1906 (Intercalated Games)London 1908Stockholm 1912Berlin 1916Antwerp 1920Paris 1924Amsterdam 1928Los Angeles 1932Berlin 1936London 1948Helsinki 1952Melbourne 1956Rome 1960Tokyo 1964Mexico City 1968Munich 1972Montreal 1976Moscow 1980Los Angeles 1984Seoul 1988Barcelona 1992Atlanta 1996Sydney 2000Athens 2004Beijing 2008London 2012Rio de Janeiro 2016Tokyo 2020Paris 2024Los Angeles 2028Brisbane 2032
Winter Olympic Games
Chamonix 1924St. Moritz 1928Lake Placid 1932Garmisch-Partenkirchen 1936St. Moritz 1948Oslo 1952Cortina d'Ampezzo 1956Squaw Valley 1960Innsbruck 1964Grenoble 1968Sapporo 1972Innsbruck 1976Lake Placid 1980Sarajevo 1984Calgary 1988Albertville 1992Lillehammer 1994Nagano 1998Salt Lake City 2002Torino 2006Vancouver 2010Sochi 2014Pyeongchang 2018Beijing 2022Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo 2026
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