Winter Games

While figure skating had been an Olympic event at both the London Games and the Antwerp Games, and ice hockey had also been held at the Antwerp Games, the IOC wanted equity between the winter and summer sports. At the 1921 Congress in Lausanne, the IOC decided to hold a winter version of the Olympic games. The first Winter Olympics were held in 1924 in Chamonix, France. The IOC made the Winter Games a permanent fixture in the Olympic Movement in 1925, and mandated that they be celebrated every 4 years on the same year as their Summer counterpart. This tradition held until the 1992 Games in Albertville, France. Beginning in 1994 the Olympic games have alternated on different 4–year cycles. Hence the most recent Winter Games were held in 2006, while 2008 marked the latest celebration of the Summer Games.