Mind-Blowing Then Vs. Now Photos
Over the past century, we’ve seen countless Olympic sports added or removed from the event lineup, a remarkable increase in the scale of competitions, and tons of historic moments experienced by world-famous athletes at the Olympic Games. The 2026 Winter Olympics are sure to bring even more unforgettable moments in the weeks to come, with the Opening Ceremony marking the official start of the Games on Friday, February 6 in Milan, Italy.
To celebrate, we wanted to look back and see how far the Winter Olympics have come since their inception in 1924. We’ve collected photos from every year the Winter Olympics have been held, so you can see for yourself how this global event has evolved over the last century.
5.
St. Moritz, Switzerland (1948) — First use of the “Magic Eye”, where photoelectric cells automatically triggered synchronization. A beam of light was projected onto the finish line and when an athlete broke the beam, the timer stopped.
10.
Grenoble, France (1968) — Norma Enriqueta Basilio, originally from Mexico, becomes the first woman in the history of the modern Olympic Games to light the Olympic flame.
13.
Lake Placid, United States (1980) — The United States ice hockey team made Olympic history, known as the “Miracle on Ice,” by defeating the defending four-time gold medalist Soviet Union team, 4–3.
14.
Sarajevo, Yugoslavia (1984) — Canadian skater Brian Orser was the first man to perform a triple axel at the Olympic Games.
15.
Calgary, Canada (1988) — The Jamaican bobsleigh team, consisting of Devon Harris, Dudley Stokes, Michael White and Chris Stokes, makes its debut. The 1993 film, Cool raceswas inspired by the story of these four men.
19.
Salt Lake City, USA (2002) — The first year, women’s bobsleigh was included as an Olympic sport and Vonetta Flowers (a Team USA bobsledder) became the first black athlete to win a gold medal at the Winter Olympics.
21.
Vancouver, Canada (2010) — When Georgian Nodar Kumaritashvili died after leaving the Olympic luge track during a training run hours before the start of the Games, he was honored at the opening ceremony. It was also the first time the opening ceremony was held indoors.
22.
Sochi, Russia (2014) — First year the Russian Federation hosts the Games. A total of 12 new events have also been added, including Ski and Snowboard Slopestyle, Ski Halfpipe, Snowboard Parallel Slalom and Women’s Ski Jumping.
23.
PyeongChang, South Korea (2018) — The Games featured more than 100 events for the first time, with 2,833 athletes across 92 teams. New events included big air snowboarding, mixed doubles curling, mass start speed skating and mixed team alpine skiing.
What were your favorite Winter Olympics? Tell us about it in the comments!
