If you go back into the mists of history you’ll find that newspaper regularly published points tables for the Olympic Games instead of the now familiar medal tables. So, using the formula that a few sporting bodies like the IAAF still occasionally use, here’s the Winter Olympic points table after day 1.

The scoring table is as follows;
1st 8 points
2nd 7
3rd 6
4th 5
5th 4
6th 3
7th 2
8th 1
If countries are level on points their single best result is the tiebreak.
[table]
Rank, Nation,Points,Tie breaker
1, NOR, 38,,
2, CAN, 29,,
3, NED, 21,,
4, USA, 18,,
5, SWE, 12,,
6, AUT, 9,,
7, CZE, 7,,
8, FIN, 8,,
9, JPN, 6, 4th,
9, RUS, 6, 4th,
11, BEL, 5,,
12, AUS, 4,,
13, FRA, 3, 6th,
13, GBR, 3, 6th,
13, POL, 3, 6th,
16, KAZ, 2,,
18, GER, 1,,

[/table]

“For the loser now, Will be later to win”. I guess when Bob Dylan wrote those words 50 years ago he never for a minute thought they’d be applied to the thorny question of which country is the best at finishing last at the Winter Olympics. The answer is not particularly gratifying if you happen to come from Great Britain. The British might have had an empire on which the sun never set but the conquest of India and large parts of Africa is not ideal preparation for various forms of sliding down a mountain or skating across frozen ponds.

So how did we calculate the table below? Very simply the last place finisher in every Winter Olympic event from 1924 to 2010 is awarded a gold medal, second to last won silver and, of course, third last gets bronze. For ease of calculation we have ignored anybody not included in the final classification so if really wanted to avoid “winning a medal” all you had to do was fall, give up or get disqualified.
The results show Great Britain with quite a lead on this “reverse medal table” which I suppose is legacy of being ever present at the Winter Games without ever being a major player at the Games. Indeed it was a Briton, Cyril Horn, who in this upside down view of Olympic history became the 1st Olympic champion by finishing last in the 500m speed skating at the Chamonix games of 1924.

The rest of top ten can be divided into countries like Japan and South Korea who like Great Britain have usually elected to fill their quota of competitors without ever really expecting to dominate the competition and countries like the USA and Canada who seem to be here by sheer force of numbers.

Argentina in 6th place with 31 “golds” is comfortably the top nation in this table to have never won a medal by the usual method of accounting with Greece next best in 15th. The most successful nation in the history of the Winter Games, Norway, also proves successful in not losing. Norway’s 15 reverse golds puts them outside the top twenty in our list and subtracted from their genuine gold medal total of 107 puts them at +92 and well clear of the USSR at +74 and Germany at +71. Unfortunately for Britain this method of calculation still keeps them at the wrong end of the list with -44 ahead of Japan on -35 with Argentina moving into third on -31.

It has to be said that coming last in an event doesn’t mean that you’re in the same class at ski jumper Eddie “The Eagle” Edwards and the Mexican cross-country skier who took so long to finish at the Calgary Games that a search party was sent out to look for him. Sometimes it’s just that Lady Luck looks you in the eye and then proceeds to knee you in the groin. That’s what happened to American speed skater Buddy Solem in the 10000 m at the St. Moritz Games of 1948. Halfway through the event a warm wind blew in from the south and started to melt the ice. By the time Solem finished his heat you could see waves forming on the ice each time he passed by. He finished 5 minutes behind the next slowest and nearly ten minutes behind the winner.

My advice to Britain? See what you can do to make additions to the Olympic programme. Maybe the introduction of darts on ice, snow snooker or sub-zero cricket may help drop Britain down the table. On second thoughts, let’s forget sub-zero cricket – the Australians might just prove too good at that.
[table colalign=”center|center|center|center|center|center|”]
Rank,Nation,G,S,B,Total
1, GBR, 53, 67, 43, 163
2, JPN, 44, 43, 36, 123
3, USA, 43, 60, 68, 171
4, CAN, 42, 41, 45, 128
5, KOR, 38, 32, 30, 100
6, ARG, 31, 25, 26, 82
7, CHN, 29, 39, 20, 88
8, FRA, 25, 30, 30, 85
9, AUS, 24, 15, 21, 60
10, YUG, 24, 15, 17, 56
11, ITA, 23, 33, 22, 78
12, HUN, 22, 24, 23, 69
13, BEL, 21, 6, 8, 35
14, AUT, 18, 16, 26, 60
15, GRE, 18, 15, 8, 41
16, ROU, 17, 21, 25, 63
17, GER, 17, 16, 18, 51
18, BUL, 16, 13, 7, 36
19, LAT, 16, 9, 15, 40
20, POL, 15, 24, 25, 64
21, NOR, 15, 14, 15, 44
22, UKR, 13, 17, 8, 38
23, SWE, 13, 12, 16, 41
24, RUS, 13, 11, 18, 42
25, TPE, 13, 6, 11, 30
26, SUI, 11, 17, 22, 50
27, EST, 10, 6, 5, 21
28, KAZ, 9, 12, 10, 31
29, CHI, 9, 7, 5, 21
30, MGL, 8, 11, 10, 29
31, NZL, 8, 7, 5, 20
32, LIB, 8, 6, 4, 18
33, NED, 8, 5, 14, 27
34, PRK, 8, 5, 7, 20
35, ARM, 8, 5, 2, 15
36, BLR, 8, 3, 16, 27
37, BRA, 7, 0, 5, 12
38, CZE, 6, 12, 11, 29
39, MEX, 6, 8, 7, 21
40, DEN, 6, 8, 1, 15
41, MDA, 6, 3, 4, 13
42, CYP, 6, 2, 4, 12
43, PUR, 6, 2, 4, 12
44, TCH, 5, 17, 10, 32
45, TUR, 5, 12, 6, 23
46, ESP, 5, 9, 12, 26
47, ISV, 5, 5, 3, 13
48, SVK, 5, 4, 9, 18
49, ISL, 5, 3, 6, 14
50, FIN, 4, 6, 9, 19
51, CRC, 4, 5, 3, 12
52, URS, 4, 4, 7, 15
53, LIE, 4, 3, 4, 11
54, BIH, 4, 3, 1, 8
55, IRI, 4, 2, 2, 8
56, SMR, 3, 6, 1, 10
57, FRG, 3, 5, 8, 16
58, MAR, 3, 4, 5, 12
59, HKG, 3, 2, 0, 5
60, UZB, 3, 1, 2, 6
61, IND, 3, 1, 1, 5
62, GUA, 3, 1, 0, 4
63, GDR, 3, 0, 2, 5
64, LTU, 3, 0, 2, 5
65, ALG, 3, 0, 1, 4
66, HON, 3, 0, 0, 3
67, IRL, 2, 5, 3, 10
68, CRO, 2, 4, 7, 13
69, MKD, 2, 3, 0, 5
70, AND, 2, 2, 1, 5
71, BOL, 2, 1, 1, 4
72, POR, 2, 1, 1, 4
73, KGZ, 2, 1, 0, 3
74, LUX, 2, 0, 1, 3
75, ALB, 2, 0, 0, 2
76, RSA, 1, 5, 1, 7
77, SLO, 1, 4, 6, 11
78, EUN, 1, 2, 1, 4
79, NEP, 1, 1, 1, 3
80, SCG, 1, 1, 1, 3
81, TJK, 1, 1, 1, 3
82, EGY, 1, 1, 0, 2
83, SEN, 1, 1, 0, 2
84, SRB, 1, 1, 0, 2
85, FIJ, 1, 0, 2, 3
86, AHO, 1, 0, 0, 1
87, CMR, 1, 0, 0, 1
88, KEN, 1, 0, 0, 1
89, THA, 1, 0, 0, 1
90, TTO, 1, 0, 0, 1
91, GEO, 0, 2, 4, 6
92, IVB, 0, 1, 1, 2
93, MON, 0, 1, 1, 2
94, GHA, 0, 1, 0, 1
95, GUM, 0, 1, 0, 1
96, ISR, 0, 1, 0, 1
97, PER, 0, 1, 0, 1
98, PHI, 0, 1, 0, 1
99, VEN, 0, 1, 0, 1
100, AZE, 0, 0, 1, 1
101, BER, 0, 0, 1, 1
102, ETH, 0, 0, 1, 1
103, MAD, 0, 0, 1, 1
104, PAK, 0, 0, 1, 1
[/table]

Jim Thorpe

Tonight the Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks will face each other in Super Bowl XLVIII so it seems as good a time as ever to delve into the link between the National Football League and the Olympic Games. The connection goes back as far as the beginning of the NFL in 1920.
The first Olympian to play in the NFL (or the American Professional Football Association as it was then called) is still almost certainly the greatest all-round sportsman ever to grace the gridiron – the legendary Jim Thorpe. For publicity purposes Thorpe was even installed at the League’s first chairman. The link continues to this day in the shape of Tampa Bay running back Jeff Demps and Marquise Goodwin, wide receiver with the Buffalo Bills.

The only man to reach the peak of both sports is another track and field legend in the shape of “Bullet” Bob Hayes. Eight years after his triumphs at the Tokyo Olympics he was part of the victorious Dallas Cowboys team at Super Bowl VI and later followed Thorpe into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Michael Carter, shot put silver medallist in 1984 is the other Olympian to earn a Super Bowl ring – he did it just 6 months after his Olympic appearance.

Unsurprisingly the vast majority of the Olympic/NFL have been both American and have come from a track and field background but there have been a number of exceptions. Wrestling is the only other sport where multiple Olympians, including 2 gold medallists, have graduated into the NFL but the last to date left the NFL after the 1969 season.
A unique case is that of NY Giants back-up quarterback Randy Dean. He made fleeting appearances in the late 70s after having been a valuable member of the US handball team at the 1976 Games.
The only non-American to reach this list is Australian high jumper Colin Ridgway. He arrived on a college scholarship to Lamar University in Texas and was signed by the Dallas Cowboys as a punter. His stint in the NFL lasted just 3 games before he was released.

Another unusual case is that of Herschel Walker, the only NFL player to have competed in the Winter Olympics. Already an established star in the NFL, Walker was a late addition to the United States Bobsled and Skeleton Federation’s bobsled programme for the 1992 Winter Olympics. Joining the squad only after the Minnesota Vikings had ended their season his appearance on the US roster was unpopular with many of his US teammates. Pushing for Brian Shimer he finished 7th.

Finally we should remember one man who never made it to this list. Stone Johnson was a finalist in the 200 m at the Rome Olympics and a member of the US relay team that was disqualified after crossing the line first in the final. In 1963 he was playing for the Kansas City Chiefs against the Oakland Raiders when he sustained a broken neck. He succumbed to his injuries 10 days later. Although he never played a down in a regular-season NFL game, his number 33 was retired by the Chiefs.

Olympic gold and Super Bowl winner
“Bullet” Bob Hayes USA
1964 100m/4×100 Gold
Dallas Cowboys (1965-74) – Super Bowl winner 1972, San Francisco 49ers (1975)

Olympic medal and Super Bowl winner
Mike Carter USA
1984 Shot Put Silver
San Francisco (1984-92)

Olympic gold medal and NFL experience
Jim Bausch – Chicago Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds (1933)
Ron Brown – Los Angeles Rams (1984-90, 1991), Los Angeles Raiders (1990)
Milt Campbell – Cleveland Browns (1957)
Henry Carr – New York Giants (1965-67)

Glenn Davis – Detroit Lions (1960-61)
Sam Graddy – Denver Broncos (1987-88), Los Angeles Raiders (1990-92)
Jim Hines – Miami Dolphins (1969), Kansas City Chiefs (1970)
James Jett – Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders (1993-2000)
Johnny Jones – New York Jets (1980-84)
Glenn Morris – Detroit Lions (1940)
Tommie Smith – Cincinnati Bengals (1969)
Jim Thorpe – Canton Bulldogs (1920 & 1926), Cleveland Indians (1921), Oorang Indians (1922-23), Rock Island Independents (1924-25), New York Giants (1925), Chicago Cardinals (1928)
Gerald Tinker – Atlanta Falcons (1974-75), Green Bay Packers (1975)
Peter Mehringer – Chicago Cardinals (1934-36)
John Spellman – Providence Steam Rollers (1925-31), Boston Braves (1932)

For a full list of all Olympians who have played in NFL (or AFL) please visit this page

Part two in a series on people who have competed at the Olympic Games despite suffering from a physical disability.

1952-56
Lis Hartel (DEN) – Equestrianism
2 silvers

In the 1930s Lis Hartel was coached by her mother Else Holst, but when she reached a national competitive level, Gunnar Andersen, a professional horseman, took over. In the early part of her career she competed in both jumping and dressage, and was Danish champion in dressage in 1943 and 1944. Later in 1944, she was struck by polio. At that time she was pregnant with her second child, and no one thought that she ever would be able to compete on horseback again. But through her determination and strong will she gradually regained function in most of her muscles, although she remained paralyzed below her knees for the rest of her life.

In 1947 she started to compete in dressage again, and she improved her dressage skill together with her excellent horse Jubilee and was selected for the Danish team in the 1952 games. Although she needed help to get on and off her horse, she surprised everybody by winning the silver medal in the dressage competition in Helsinki. Four years later she won another dressage silver medal at the Equestrian Games in Stockholm, also this time together with her favourite horse Jubilee. She won the unofficial world championships in dressage in 1954, and was Danish champion in dressage in 1952, 1953, 1954, 1956 and 1959, the last time with a new horse, Limelight.

Lis Hartel’s equestrian achievements caught interest among ordinary sport interested people in Scandinavia, where equestrian among many was regarded as an upper-class sport. She was a charming and charismatic woman, extremely popular not only among followers of equestrians, but also among people outside the horse circles. She also became a role model of other victims of polio, showing what was possible to achieve through training and determination. She was invited to do dressage exhibitions in several countries in Western Europe, and raised funds for treatment of polio victims. In Doorn in the Netherlands, a centre for disabled was named after her, the Lis Hartel Foundation.

2008-2012
Natalia Partyka (POL) – Table tennis
Natalia Partyka was born without a right hand or forearm. She began to play table tennis at the age of seven and four years competed in the 2000 Paralympic Games in Sydney. At eleven years of age, she became the youngest Paralympian in history. By 2004 she was clearly the Paralympic table tennis player and began to make an impact in able bodied competition by winning the European Cadets title. Partyka has gone on to win three consecutive Paralympic titles, compete in both the Beijing and London Olympics and win medals at the able bodied European Championships.

1996
Paola Fantato (ITA) – Archery
At age 8, Paola Fantato was diagnosed with polio, and has been wheelchair-bound since. She picked up archery in her twenties, and quickly became quite successful at archery events for disabled. She won a Paralympic bronze medal in 1988, upgrading that to gold in 1992. She was then invited to join the Italian Olympic team and qualified for the Atlanta Games. While eliminated in the first round, she became the first athlete to compete in the Olympics and Paralympics in the same year, winning team gold and an individual bronze. Her successes have only increased, adding two golds in Sydney and one in Athens, as well as two world titles to her tally.

1948
Jack Dearlove (GBR) – Rowing
1 silver
Jack Dearlove was 12 years old when he lost the lower part of his leg. He was hitching a lift to cricket practice on a friend’s bicycle when the wheels of the bike stuck in some tram lines. The two boys were thrown into the path of a steam wagon and his friend was killed outright. By the time of the London Olympics of 1948 Dearlove had twenty years’ experience as a coxswain which included steering the Thames Rowing Club to a victory at the Henley Regatta. He refused to wear an artificial leg, walking with the aid of crutches instead, and this proved problematic for the British Olympic Association who forbade him for taking part in the opening ceremony of the London Games.
Dearlove went on to have a successful career in business with the Sainsbury’s organization. His son, Sir Richard Dearlove, served as head of the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) from 1999 to 2004.

If all goes to plan a 55-year-old skier will line up in a few weeks time at the Sochi Winter Olympics – but who are the other “Golden Oldies” who have graced the Winter Games?

These are the oldest competitors to have appeared in each sport currently on the Olympic programme.

Alpine Skiing

Hubertus von Fürstenberg-von Hohenlohe (MEX)

51 years, 26 days at Vancouver 2010

You can say many things about Prince Hubertus of Hohenlohe-Langenburg but you can never, ever, say he has a dull biography.  An aristocrat with roots deep in European nobility, he has been a pop singer, professional photographer and businessman at various points in his life. In 1981 he founded the Mexican Skiing Federation in an attempt to participate in international competition. Since then he has competed at 15 World Championships and 5 Winter Olympics and, most recently, placed 56th in the slalom at the 2013 World Championships. Barring illness or injury he will return for one more Olympic appearance in Sochi.

Biathlon

Thanasis Tsakiris (GRE)

45 years, 34 days at Vancouver 2010

After a gap of 12 years Thanasis Tsakiris reappeared on the Olympic stage in 2010 at the age of 45. Originally a cross-country skier, he switched to biathlon in the late 80s and stayed in the sport long enough to compete in the same Olympic team as his daughter. He still competes, albeit at a lower level and has won national titles every year for the last 28 years.

Cross-country skiing

Arturo Kinch (CRC)

49 years, 309 days at Turin 2006

Born to parents who were Protestant missionaries in Costa Rica, Arturo Kinch took up ski racing whilst on a soccer scholarship at a Colorado college. He first competed at the Winter Games as an Alpine skier at Lake Placid in 1980 then returned in 1984 as the first man for over 30 years to compete at both alpine and cross-country at the same Olympics. After a 12-year gap he returned to the Olympic arena in 2006 and finally brought the curtain down on his career in Turin when two months shy of his 50th birthday.

Curling

Carl August Kronlund (SWE)

58 years, 155 days at Chamonix 1924

Oldest competitor at any Olympic Winter Games.

At 58 years of age, Carl August Kronlund was not only the oldest competitor at the inaugural Winter Olympics but also the oldest medal winner. Kronlund, a Stockholm businessman, played in Sweden’s victory over France and received a silver medal for his exploits. For many years it was incorrectly thought that the curling tournament in 1924 was only a demonstration event but, at the start of the 21st century, the IOC confirmed that it was a full medal event.

Figure Skating

Joseph Savage (USA)

52 years, 267 days at Lake Placid 1932

Joseph Savage’s sporting career reads like it should have happened in reverse. A successful attorney with a New York law firm, he was a major figure in the administration on figure skating in America and served a term as the President of the Amateur Skating Union of the USA in 1929-30. Savage was also a relatively successful competitor who was a regular winner of Mid-Atlantic regional titles in the 1920s.  He was just short of 50 when he won his 1st medal at the US nationals and 52 when he and partner Gertrude Meredith qualified for the 1932 Olympics.  Amazingly his career did not end there and in 1936 he combined with Marjorie Parker Smith to win the inaugural US national title in ice dancing. He was still competing and winning medals at the US Championships aged 63.

Bobsleigh

Hubert Menten (NED)

54 years, 158 days at St. Moritz 1928

A businessman whose family made their fortune in the oil business, Hubert Menten was one of the founders of the Dutch bobsleigh club in Davos, Switzerland which was instrumental in getting the Dutch bob to the 1928 Olympics, and later coached the 1929 Dutch duo that won the European title. An avid art collector and dealer, he was also very much pro-Nazi in his political views and was investigated by the Allied powers for his dealings with Hermann Goering.

Freestyle Skiing

Clyde Getty (ARG)

44 years, 152 days at Turin 2006

Born and raised in North Carolina, Clyde Getty came through the US system before switching to Argentina, the land of the parents, which enabled him to compete at the 2006 Winter Olympics. He continues to compete at World Cup level, although now in his 50s, and has an outside shot at the Sochi Games.

Ice Hockey

Béla Ordódy (HUN)

48 years, 29 days at St.Moritz 1928

Béla Ordódy was a major figure in the early years of Hungarian soccer and played for the first ever Hungarian national team in 1901. He was even awarded a trophy for Hungary’s player of the year in 1902. A generation later Ordódy re-emerged as goaltender for the Hungarian national ice hockey team at the 1928 Winter Olympic Games. At the time there was a fair amount of crossover between the two sports particularly in continental Europe. He only conceded a single goal in his only Olympic appearance but the goal was enough to eliminate Hungary from the tournament.

Luge

Matiás Stinnes (ARG)

53 years, 217 days at Innsbruck 1964

When luge became an Olympic sport Argentina set up a team of six to provide competitors for the 1964 Winter Games. The only survivor of this programme was 53-year-old German born Matiás Stinnes.  Stinnes crashed out of the Innsbruck Games but appeared on the entry lists again at the 1968 Games at Grenoble though he withdrew before the competition began.

Nordic Combined

Anders Haugen (USA)

39 years, 115 days at St.Moritz 1928

Already a record holder as the oldest Olympian in his sport’s history, Anders Haugen was 86-years-old when he finally received his Olympic bronze medal. In 1974, at the 50th reunion of the 1924 Norwegian team, Norwegian sports historian Jacob Vaage was going over the results when he noticed an error. Haugen had correctly been given 17.916 points, but 3rd place finisher Thorleif Haug’s scores added up to 17.821, not the 18.000 with which he had been credited. The IOC was notified and at a special ceremony in Oslo, on 12 September 1974, Anders Haugen was given his bronze medal by Haug’s daughter – more than 50 years after the competition.

Short Track Speed Skating

Cathy Turner (USA)

35 years, 314 days at Nagano 1998

A US champion as a teenager, Cathy Turner retired from the sport in 1980 and became a professional singer. A decade later, with short track now an Olympic sport, she returned and claimed victory in the 500 m at the Albertville Games.  Another short-lived retirement followed but she was back to retain her Olympic title in 1994. Known as a tough and ruthless skater, Turner bowed out of Olympic competition at the Nagano Olympics.

Skeleton

James Coates (GBR)

53 years, 295 days at St. Moritz 1948

The sport of skeleton has, like its sister sport bobsleigh, benefitted from the British aristocracy’s predilection to do stupid and dangerous things at high speeds. It seems fitting therefore that the oldest man to compete in Olympic skeleton is James Stuart Coates, 3rd Baronet Coates, of Auchendrane. Coates was a veteran of St. Moritz and once said of the Cresta Run “She is a powerful and attractive mistress. She will stand no nonsense when you are learning the ropes and many and severe are the rebuffs she will give to even her most ardent suitors”. A veteran of World War I, Coates was to be in charge of the operation to evacuate British royalty should German forces invade Britain during World War II.

Ski Jumping

Pál Ványa (HUN)

43 years, 239 days at St. Moritz 1948

From modern day Slovakia, Pál Ványa had been Hungarian champion as far back as 1931. His Olympic experience consisted of a single jump at the 1948 Olympics that ended in a fall on landing.

Snowboarding

Sondra Van Ert (USA)

37 years, 342 days at Salt Lake City 2002

Originally an alpine skier at the University of Utah Sondra Van Ert was good enough to win silver in downhill when she represented the USA at the World University Games. A serious knee injury shortly before graduation seemed to end her racing career and she became the manager of a paint store in Idaho. She took up recreational snowboarding at the age of 26 and soon returned to the competitive side of sport. Van Ert won 6 US titles and 2 World Championship bronzes before retiring in 2004.

Speed Skating

Albert Tebbit (GBR)

52 years, 31 days at Chamonix 1924

It may seem incredible to today’s speed skating fans but once upon a time British skaters were amongst the best in the world. Unfortunately for Albert Tebbitt that time, which coincided with his prime as a skater, came 30 years before speed skating débuted at the Olympics. Tebbitt even broke a world record, the now unofficial hour record, but his best days were well behind him when he made his bow at Olympic level.

Shortly before Christmas the French born Alpine skier Elise Pelegrin qualified for the Sochi Winter Olympics. Normally this wouldn’t be a big deal but Pelegrin has Maltese ancestry and elected to compete for Malta at the beginning of the 2012-2013 season.  Out of 49  European nations currently affiliated with the IOC, Malta is the only one yet to make an appearance at the Winter Games. Barring unforeseen circumstances this will change in February and, for the first time, all the eligible European countries will be present in Sochi.

Of the 16 nations that competed at the inaugural Winter Olympics in 1924 fourteen were European including powerhouse nations Austria and Norway but also lesser lights like Belgium and Hungary.

Germany, banned from the Games following World War I, debuted alongside the Netherlands in 1928 and more Mediterranean nations followed in 1936.  A slow trickle of new nations followed post-WW2 until the changes in Eastern Europe saw the emergence into Olympic competition of a flood of ex-Soviet and ex-Yugoslav nations from 1992 onwards.

European nations to compete at the Winter Olympics are, in order of debut;

1924 – Austria, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Great Britain, Finland, France, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, Yugoslavia.

1928 – Estonia, Germany, Luxembourg, Lithuania, Netherlands, Romania

1936 – Bulgaria, Spain, Greece, Liechtenstein, Turkey

1948 – Denmark, Iceland

1952 – Portugal

1956 – Soviet Union

1968 – West Germany, East Germany

1976 – Andorra, San Marino

1980 – Cyprus

1984 – Monaco

1992 – Croatia, Ireland, Slovenia

1994 – Armenia, Georgia, Czech Republic, Israel, Moldova, Russia, Slovakia, Ukraine, Bosnia

1998 – Azerbaijan, Serbia and Montenegro, FYR Macedonia,

2006 – Albania

2010 – Serbia, Montenegro

2014 –  Malta

Outside the mainstream nations cross-country skiers from Greenland regularly compete for Denmark and a snowboarder from the Isle of Man has represented Great Britain.

Will there be any additions to this list? That depends on politics. The next debutants might be Kosovo? Or Scotland? Perhaps the Basque Country or Catalonia? We’ll just have to wait and see – although the clever bet is that it might be a while before we see a snowboarder from the Vatican City nailing a Rippey flip at the Olympics.