Sapporo 1972 - Olympic Games Winners

Start:

03 Feb 1972

End:

13 Feb 1972

Countries:

Athletes:

1006

Sports:

Events:

City:

Sapporo, Japan

For the first time, Sapporo, Japan was selected as host city of the Olympics 1940, but the Sino-Japanese incident caused the Winter Olympic games 1940 was reassigned and later was cancelled due World War II.
In April 1966 at the 64th IOC session in Rome, finally, the Winter Olympics 1972 was awarded to Sapporo, Japan with 32 votes. The other candidate cities were Banff, Canada - 16 votes, Salt Lake City, USA and Lahti, Finland with seven votes each.
It was the first Winter Olympics in Asia.

The Emperor Hirohito officially opened the 11 Winter Olympic games 1972.
Austrian skier Karl Schranz was banned to compete for receiving payment from ski product manufacturers.
When IOC and IIHF did not permit to include the NHL players in hockey teams while full-time players from the Communist countries, who officially were not professionals, were allowed to compete, Canada boycoted the 1972 Olympic hockey tournament.
Galina Kulakova of the USSR won all three wonen's events in Cross-country. Ard Schenk of the Netherlands won three golds in Speed skating with a wide margin and became a national hero in the Netherlands that a flower was named in his honour: Crocus chrysanthus Ard Schenk.