Before 1924, figure skating and ice hockey events were held at the Summer Olympics, making their debuts in 1908 and 1920, respectively. In 1924, the French Olympic Committee organized a multi-sport competition called “International Winter Sports Week,” which was only later recognized as the first official Winter Olympics by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). From that point on, the Winter Olympics were held every four years in the same year as the Summer Olympics until 1994, when the Winter Games switched to being held two years before or after the Summer Games.
The first Winter Olympics in 1924 consisted of six sports. More than 100 years later, there are still only eight sports; compare that to the Summer Olympics, which has expanded to include 32 sports. The number of Winter Olympic events, however, has ballooned to 116 in 2026—up from just 16 in the inaugural iteration.
How are Olympic sports defined?
Each Olympic sport is represented by an international governing body, and the IOC considers a sport to encompass all disciplines governed by that federation. For instance, the sport “skiing,” which is overseen by the International Ski and Snowboard Federation, comprises six Olympic disciplines: alpine, cross-country, freestyle, Nordic combined, ski jumping and snowboarding. That is the most of any sport.
Five of the eight Winter Olympic sports, however, have just one discipline.
Over the years, sports such as skating, skiing and bobsleigh have added new disciplines, like when snowboarding made its first appearance under the skiing umbrella in 1998. The following Winter Games in 2002, skeleton returned as a bobsleigh discipline after a long hiatus. Unlike the Summer Games, in which sports have come and gone frequently, the lineup of Winter Olympic sports has been largely stable.
To be considered for inclusion in the Winter Olympics, a sport or discipline must be played on snow or ice and must be played in at least 25 countries and on three continents.
What are the new sports for the 2026 Olympics?
Ski mountaineering, a timed race which consists of climbing mountains and then descending them on skis, is the only sport making its debut in 2026. There will be three medal events: men’s, women’s and a mixed relay.
Which Olympic sport has the most events?
Skiing, with its six different disciplines, has had the most medal events in every single Winter Olympics since 1932 and will have 57 in the Milan Games. Freestyle skiing, with 15, is the discipline with the most events, followed by speed skating with 14.
The number of events in each sport has increased over time, and the 116 gold medals that will be awarded in Milan are a record.
What were demonstration sports?
For most of the previous century, the Olympics included demonstration sports to either promote or gauge interest in a new sport, without officially including them in the medal count. Some disciplines that were introduced in this manner, such as freestyle skiing, were eventually added as official disciplines, but the practice of demonstration sports is no longer done.
