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Lydia Skoblikova
of the Soviet Union sets Olympic records and wins all four golds in speedskating events.
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For the first time in Winter Olympic history, the
total number of athletes to attend a Winter Games
topped 1,000. Luge made its debut; ski jumping
was divided into two separate events; and
bobsledding returned. The Innsbruck Olympics
suffered from a shortage of snow, and had to have
tons of the white stuff shipped in, with the help of
the Austrian army. Highlights
 French sisters Christine Goitschel and
Marielle Goitschel dueled for the gold
medal in the Alpine skiing slalom and giant
slalom events at Innsbruck. In the slalom,
Christine won the gold, while Marielle settled
for the silver. In the giant slalom, the winning
order reversed, with Marielle taking the
gold, and Christine the silver. Lydia Skoblikova of the Soviet Union was
unbeatable in the women's speedskating
events, winning all four gold medals. In the process, she also set
three Olympic records in the 500m, 1,000m
and 1,500. Sixten Jernberg of Norway retired from
Olympic competition after winning his last
medal, a gold in the 50km cross-country
event. In all, Jernberg had participated in
three Olympic Winter Games, collecting four
golds, three silver and two bronzes in Nordic
events. In the first luge events, German
tobagganers swept all three medals in the
singles event, while German women took the
gold and silver in the women's singles
competition.
| Attendance | Male Athletes | Female Athletes | Most-Medaled | U.S. Rank | | 36 nations | 986 | 200 | USSR (25) | Seventh |
Source: Knight-Ridder/Tribune
© Copyright 1998 The Washington Post Company
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