The Winter Olympic Games is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were held in Chamonix, France. The modern Olympic Games were inspired by the ancient Olympic Games, which were held in Olympia, Greece, from the 8th century BC to the 4th century AD. Baron Pierre de Coubertin founded the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1894, leading to the first modern Summer Olympic Games in Athens, Greece in 1896. The IOC is the governing body of the Olympic Movement, with the Olympic Charter defining its structure and authority.
Short-track speed skating is a form of competitive ice speed skating. In competitions, multiple skaters skate on an oval ice track with a length of 111.111 metres (364.54 ft). The rink itself is 60 metres (196.85 ft) long by 30 metres (98.43 ft) wide, which is the same size as an Olympic-sized figure skating rink and an international-sized ice hockey rink. Related sports include long track speed skating and inline speed skating.
Clara Hughes, is a Canadian cyclist and speed skater who has won multiple Olympic medals in both sports. Hughes won two bronze in the 1996 Summer Olympics and four medals over the course of three Winter Olympics.
The Olympic Oval in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, is North America's first covered speed skating oval; it was built for the 1988 Winter Olympics and opened 36 years ago on September 27, 1987. Located on the University of Calgary campus, it is the official designated training centre for Speed Skating Canada and the Elite Athlete Pathway.
Bonnie Kathleen Blair is a retired American speed skater. She is one of the top skaters of her era, and one of the most decorated athletes in Olympic history. Blair competed for the United States in four Olympics, winning five gold medals and one bronze medal.
Daniel Erwin Jansen is a retired American speed skater. A multiple world champion in sprint and perennial favorite at the Winter Olympics, he broke a ten-year Olympic jinx when he won a gold medal in his final race, which was the 1,000 meters in the 1994 Winter Games.
Cindy Klassen, is a Canadian retired long track speed skater. She is a six-time medallist having achieved one gold, two silver, three bronze at the Winter Olympics.
Irene Karlijn (Ireen) Wüst is a Dutch former long track speed skater. Wüst became the most successful speed skating olympian ever by achieving at least one gold medal in each of five consecutive Winter Olympic appearances and is the only athlete to win an individual gold medal in five consecutive Olympics, Summer or Winter.
Short-track speed skating has been a contest at the Winter Olympics since the 1992 Winter Games in Albertville, France. Prior to that, it was a demonstration sport at the 1988 games. The results from the 1988 demonstration competition are not included in the official Olympic statistics. The sport has been dominated by teams from East Asia and North America, namely South Korea, China, Canada and the United States. Those four countries have won 147 of 195 medals awarded since 1992. South Korea leads the medal tally, with 53 medals including 26 golds since 1992. The majority of medals that South Korea and China have won at the Winter Olympics come from short-track speed skating.
Olivier Jean is a three time Olympian who represented Canada in both short and long track speed skating. Olivier Jean is a gold medalist from the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games in the men's 5000m relay. He is a canadian short track speed skater, racing internationally from 2002 to 2015 and switched to long track speed skating, competing internationally from 2015 to 2018. Olivier competed at his second Olympic Games in Sochi 2014 in short track speed skating, and for his third game appearance, switched to long track speed skating, competing in the mass start at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympic Games. His appearance is well-known for his dreadlocks and for listening to reggae, which he says makes him skate faster.
Katherine Reutter-Adamek is an American short track speed skater. She is a two-time medalist in the Winter Olympics, 2011 overall world silver medalist and the 2010–2011 overall ISU Short Track Speed Skating World Cup champion.
Brian Hansen is an American speed skater and silver medalist in the Winter Olympics.
Ivanie Blondin is a Canadian speed skater. She primarily skates in the long distances of 3000 m and 5000 m and the mass start event. Blondin won a silver medal in the mass start event at the 2015 World Single Distance Speed Skating Championships and a gold medal in the same event at the 2020 World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships. She also won the silver medal at the 2020 World Allround Speed Skating Championships. She won a gold medal at the 2022 Winter Olympics, in Women's team pursuit.
Brianne Tutt is a Canadian speedskater from Airdrie, Alberta.
Kim Boutin is a Canadian short track speed skater. Boutin won silver in the 1,000 m and bronze in the 500 m and 1,500 m events at the 2018 Winter Olympics at Pyeonchang, Korea. She was the first Canadian female short track speed skater to win three individual Olympic medals in a single Olympics and the first Canadian woman to win an Olympic medal in the 1,500 m. As a result of her three medal performance she was named the flag bearer for Canada at the closing ceremonies for the 2018 Winter Olympics. Boutin has also won junior and senior world championships and World Cup medals.
Canada competed at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, from February 9 to 25, 2018. It was the nation's 23rd appearance at the Winter Olympics, having competed at every Games since their inception in 1924. Canada competed in all sports disciplines, except Nordic combined. The chef de mission was Isabelle Charest, who was appointed in February 2017.
Pascal Dion is a Canadian short-track speed skater and Olympic gold medalist.
Isabelle Weidemann is a Canadian speed skater. She is a multiple Olympic medallist, winning gold in the team pursuit, silver in the 5,000 metre, and bronze in the 3,000 metre at the 2022 Winter Olympics. She is the third Canadian ever to have won more than two medals at a single Winter Olympic Games following Cindy Klassen and Gaétan Boucher. Weidemann also previously won a silver and bronze medal at the 2021 and 2020 World Single Distance Championships in women's team pursuit.
Canada 