Calgary 1988 Olympics

The 1988 Calgary Olympic Games, officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games, were an international multi-sport event held in Calgary, in the province of Alberta, Canada, between February 13 and 28, 1988. They were an economic success, which led to millions of dollars in profit. The Games left a strong mark on the city, profoundly transforming its economy. 1,423 athletes (1,122 men and 301 women) from 58 countries participated.

This edition was the last in which the Paralympic Games and the Winter Olympic Games were held in separate venues.

History

Background

Calgary, prior to this edition, had attempted to host the Winter Olympics in 1964 and 1968.

Calgary was designated a candidate on September 30, 1981. The vote took place in Baden-Baden (West Germany), and defeated the Italian city of Cortina d'Ampezzo in the first round and in the final to the Swedish city of Falun by a vote of 35 to 25.

The different governmental levels turned to the organization of the Games, and thus the federal government contributed 225 million dollars, the province of Alberta 125 million and the city of Calgary 50 million. The American television station ABC bought the television rights for a record amount, at that time, of 398 million dollars. Likewise, another 90 million were obtained from sponsors and licenses.

The Olympic flame traveled across Canada in 88 days and a contest was created so that citizens had the opportunity to carry the torch in 1 km routes.

Great moments

The Games were opened by Canada's Governor General Jeanne Sauvé.

• Matti Nykänen of Finland dominated the ski jumping tests, achieving 3 gold medals.
• The Dutch skater Yvonne van Gennip also won 3 gold medals at speed tests, beating 2 world records.
• Alberto Tomba from Italy won two golds in alpine skiing.
• The supergigant slalon test made its debut in these Games, both in male and female categories.
• The curling, free-style skiing, and short-track speed skating were exhibits.
• The Calgary Winter Games were also particular with the participation of two teams with almost no experience and little chances of getting medals:
  • Jamaica first introduced a bobsleigh team in history, a typical sport of cold weather. In full competition, the Jamaican team suffered an accident when its sleigh was blown. However, the public joined in their support, reaching out to the great figures. Upon their return to their country, they were received as heroes. After this historic event Walt Disney Pictures bought history rights and made a film entitled Cool Runningsreleased in 1993.
  • For his part, Eddie "the Eagle" Edwards qualified for the ski jumps of 70m, with only a year of experience in the sport. By achieving a good mark in his first attempt, he was given the opportunity to jump on the highest track of 90m, establishing a national long jump record for Britain. The exploit of Edwards was taken to the cinema in 2016 with the film Eddie the Eagle.

Olympic Torch

From November 17, 1987 to February 13, 1988, 6,250 relievers carried the Olympic flame on an 18,000-kilometer course that began in Greece (Olympia - Athens) and then followed the following route in Canada:

St. Johns - Quebec - Montreal - Ottawa - Toronto - Winnipeg - Inuvik - Vancouver - Edmonton - Calgary

Sports

Medals

1988 Winter Olympics
Position	Country	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	Soviet Union (URS)	11	9	9	29
2	Eastern Germany (GDR)	9	10	6	25
3	Switzerland (SUI)	5	5	5	15
4	Finland (FIN)	4	0	3	7
5	Sweden (SWE)	4	0	2	6
6	Austria (UT)	3	5	2	10
7	Netherlands (NED)	3	2	2	7
8	Western Germany (FRG)	2	4	2	8
9	United States (USA)	2	1	3	6
10	Italy (ITA)	2	1	2	5

Pets

• The official pets of the Olympic Games were two polar bears called Hidy and Howdy. The names were chosen through a contest by the Calgary Zoo, which had 7000 proposals.

Participants

58 countries sent representatives. These were:

West Germany, East Germany, Andorra, Netherlands Antilles, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Chile, China, Chinese Taipei, Cyprus, North Korea, South Korea, Costa Rica, Denmark, Spain, United States, Fiji, Philippines, Finland, France, Greece, Guam, Guatemala, Hungary, India, Iceland, US Virgin Islands, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Morocco, Mexico, Monaco, Mongolia, Norway, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, Romania, San Marino, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the Soviet Union, and Yugoslavia.