Turin, Italy
10-26 february 2006
A record 2,508 athletes from 80 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) competed at the Turin Winter Games, and 26 NOCs took home medals, another record.
Austrians dominated Alpine skiing, gaining 14 of the 30 medals awarded. South Korea displayed equal success in short-track speed skating (gaining 10 medals of the 24 awarded). On the women's side, Sun-Yu Jin earned three gold medals, and for the men Hyun-Soo Ahn won three golds and one bronze. The other triple-gold winner was Michael Greis in biathlon. Cindy Klassen earned medals in five of the six women's speed skating events. Another speed skater, Claudia Peschstein, won a gold and a silver to become the first athlete in her sport to earn nine career medals. With his victory in the Super G, Kjetil Andre Aamodt became the first Alpine skier to earn four medals in the same event and the first to win four gold medals in total. At the age of 39, skeleton specialist Duff Gibson became the oldest athlete in the history of the Olympic Winter Games to win a gold medal in an individual event. Andre Lange drove to victory in the two-man bobsleigh and then defended his Olympic championship in the four-man event. During the cross-country skiing team sprint, Sara Renner of Canada broke one of her poles. Norwegian head coach Bjornar Hakensmoen, seeing her struggle, gave her one of his (albeit 12 cm too long). This allowed Renner to help her team win silver medals, and dropped Norway out of the medals. Bjornar Hakensmoen's display of fair play clearly demonstrates true sportsmanship.
80 National Olympic Committees (Nations)
2,508 athletes (960 women, 1,548 men)
84 events
18 000 volunteers
