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The Winter Olympics head to Italy in 2026 with Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo sharing hosting duties. It will be the third time that Italy has hosted the modern Winter Olympics, and The Boot has big shoes to fill.
There have been dozens of iconic moments at the Winter Olympics, but only the 10 best made our list. Keep reading to see the 10 best moments in Winter Olympics history and learn more about the upcoming games this February.
The Winter Olympics Has a Long History…
Like their summer counterpart, the Winter Olympic Games can trace their origins to Ancient Greece. The modern iteration of the games debuted in 1924 and was held the same year as the Summer Olympics until 1994.
Originally, the modern Winter Olympics consisted of five sports:
- Bobsleigh
- Curling
- Ice hockey
- Nordic skiing
- Skating
In 2026, there will be 16 sports featured, including the debut of Ski Mountaineering. In total, there will be 116 medal events, the most in the history of the Winter Olympics.
Norway leads the all-time medal count with 148. However, if you include the former states of each country, Germany leads with 163, thanks to the combined medal count of East and West Germany. The US is the only country to win a gold medal at every Winter Olympics.
The next Winter Olympics are scheduled for February 6th – 22nd in Italy. Check out our Olympics betting guide to find out more about how to wager on every event.
Top 10 Best Moments of the Winter Olympics
All eyes will be on Italy in February for the XXV Winter Olympic Games. Let’s take a closer look at the 10 best Winter Olympic moments from the previous 24 competitions.
10. Steven Bradbury is the “Last Man Standing”
Ice can be slippery, and the field during the 2002 short-track 1,000-meter final found that out the hard way. Australian skater Steven Bradbury was in last place heading into the final turn of the medal round.
The other four skaters ahead of Bradbury fell on the last turn, opening the way for the Aussie to pick up the win.
His victory brought the first-ever Winter Olympic gold back to Australia. Since Bradbury’s iconic win, Australia has claimed five other gold medals at the Winter Games.
9. Ester Ledecká Wins Gold with Borrowed Skis
Ester Ledecká sought to make history at the 2018 Games as she attempted to become the first athlete to compete in alpine skiing and snowboarding in the same year.
The Czech star had to borrow skis from American Mikaela Shiffrin to compete in the Super-G Gold event in alpine skiing. Ledecká was the 43rd-ranked skier entering the event. She won gold by 0.01 seconds in a major upset.
Ledecká then competed in snowboarding, her more experienced sport, and won the gold in the Parallel Giant Slalom. The win helped her achieve her goal of not only competing in both events, but winning gold in skiing and snowboarding at the same Olympics.
8. North and South Korea “Unify” at the 2018 Games
The history between South Korea and North Korea is long and complicated, but the countries set their differences aside for the 2018 games. With the games taking place in PyeongChang, there was an opportunity for peace between the long-feuding countries.
North Korea and South Korean athletes marched together for just the third time in the history of the Games. They also waved flags showing a unified Korea, and athletes from the two countries played on the same unified women’s hockey team that year.
7. Sidney Crosby’s Golden Goal in 2010
As the host country, the pressure was on Canada to win gold in men’s hockey at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
Canada’s gold medal hopes were on the brink in the championship game. They faced the US, and the game went to sudden death overtime.
Penguin’s star Sidney Crosby, who had led Pittsburgh to the Stanley Cup the year before, came through for his home country in crunch time. Sidney’s “Golden Goal” lifted Canada to a 3-2 win over their southern rivals.
6. Marit Bjørgen Becomes the Most-Decorated Winter Olympian
Norway did not become the most decorated Winter Olympic country without having several star athletes. No Winter Olympian did more for their country’s medal count than Norway’s Marit Bjørgen.
A cross-country skier, Bjørgen holds the record with 29 Cross-Country World Cup wins. She competed in the Winter Olympics five times from 2002 through 2018.
Bjørgen has 15 Winter Olympic medals, making her the most-decorated Winter Olympian in history. Her collection includes eight golds, four silvers, and three bronzes. Her final five medals came in the 2018 Winter Olympics at the age of 37.
5. Eddie the Eagle and the Jamaican Bobsled Team
The 1988 Winter Olympics gave fans not one, but two memorable underdog stories.
First, there was Michael Edwards, better known as Eddie the Eagle. The British skier became the first athlete to compete for Great Britain in the Olympic ski jump. Unfortunately, he finished last in both events he competed in.
The Jamaican bobsled team also made history in 1988, competing in the Winter Olympics for the first time. Famously, they had to borrow equipment from other countries to compete.
Their stories were memorialized in the films Eddie the Eagle and Cool Runnings, respectively.
4. Vonetta Flowers 2002 Gold Medal Win
Speaking of historic bobsledding performances, Vonetta Flowers officially broke the color barrier in 2002. Flowers started her career in track and field but transitioned to winter sports after college.
Flowers and Jill Bakken represented the US at the 2002 Winter Olympics in the two-woman bobsled event. It was the first time women’s bobsledding was included in the Winter Olympics.
The duo won gold, and Flowers became the first African American to win a gold medal at the Winter Olympics.
3. 2002 Figure Skating Scoring Scandal
Another historic moment from the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City was the scoring scandal surrounding the pairs’ figure skating competition.
Many, including the NBC and CBS broadcast teams, proclaimed Canada’s Jamie Salé and David Pelletier as winners of the event. However, Russia’s Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze were awarded the gold instead.
After an investigation, it was discovered that Marie-Reine Le Gougne, the judge from France, was pressured into voting for the Russian pair to win. After the incident, the ISU Judging System was updated to prevent similar scandals, and Salé and Pelletier were awarded gold medals.
2. Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan in 1994
2002 was not the only year with a major skating scandal at the Winter Olympics. Eight years earlier, Nancy Kerrigan was assaulted by Shane Stant in January while preparing for the 1994 Games in Norway.
The attack was planned by Shawn Eckhardt and Jeff Gillooly, the ex-husband of Kerrigan’s biggest rival, Tonya Harding.
Kerrigan recovered from the attack in time to compete against Harding in the 1994 Winter Olympics. Ukraine’s Oksana Baiul narrowly beat Kerrigan for gold, while Harding finished eighth.
No one tell Harding she finished second on our list, I hear she is a sore loser.
1. Miracle on Ice
The top spot on our list of the best Winter Olympic moments took place in Lake Placid, NY, at the 1980 Games. In the gold medal hockey game, the underdog US men’s team faced a dominant Soviet Union team that had won five of the previous six golds.
Despite being heavy favorites, the Soviet Union lost 4-3 in the medal round. The so-called “Miracle on Ice” propelled the US to the gold medal game, where they beat Finland.
Al Michaels’ “Do you believe in miracles?” call was as iconic as the win itself. The iconic win was made into a film shortly after, and they were recently awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by Donald Trump.
It was so memorable that the win completely overshadowed fellow American Eric Heiden’s five-gold-medal performance in speed skating, a feat that has still never been matched.
What Will the Next Winter Olympics Bring?
As you can see, there have been many unforgettable moments at the Winter Olympic Games over its 100+ year history. My personal favorite will also be the Jamaican Bobsled Team’s debut in 1988.
The 25th Winter Olympic Games promise more iconic moments. You can watch and bet on all the action this February as the Games air live from Italy.
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