2022 Winter Olympics: Top Athletes, Event Schedule and Medal History

Only three days remain until the formal start of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.

As with the last Summer Olympics in Tokyo, organizers have made special accommodations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Most notably, the showcase will lack its usual grandeur with limits on the number of spectators in attendance for each event.

Norway will look to lead the field once again after collecting the most overall medals (39) and tying Germany for the most golds (14) four years ago in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

The opening ceremony is scheduled for Friday, but action in Beijing will actually begin Wednesday as the curling and luge competitions get underway.

Here's a quick preview for this year's Winter Games:

2022 Winter Olympics Schedule

• Curling
• Luge

Thursday, Feb. 3

• Alpine
• Skiing
• Curling
• Freestyle Skiing
• Ice Hockey
• Luge
• Ski Jumping

Friday, Feb. 4

• Alpine Skiing
• Curling
• Figure Skating
• Ice Hockey
• Luge
• Ski Jumping

Saturday Feb. 5

• Alpine Skiing
• *Biathlon (Mixed 4x6km Relay)
• *Cross-Country Skiing (Women's 7.5km + 7.5km Skiathlon)
• *Curling Freestyle Skiing (Men's Moguls)
• Ice Hockey
• Luge
• *Short Track Speed Skating (Mixed Team Relay)
• *Ski Jumping (Women's Normal Hill Individual)
• *Snowboard Speed Skating (Women's 3,000m)

Sunday, Feb. 6

• *Alpine Skiing (Men's Downhill)
• *Cross-Country Skiing (Men's 15km+15km Skiathlon)
• Curling
• Figure Skating
• *Freestyle Skiing (Women's Moguls)
• *Ice Hockey Luge (Men's Singles)
• *Nordic Combined Ski Jumping (Men's Normal Hill Individual)
• *Snowboard (Women's Snowboard Slopestyle)
• *Speed Skating (Men's 5,000m)

Monday, Feb. 7

• *Alpine Skiing (Women's Giant Slalom)
• *Biathlon (Women's 15km Individual)
• Curling
• *Figure Skating (Team Event)
• Freestyle Skiing
• Ice Hockey
• Luge
• Nordic Combined
• *Short Track Speed Skating (Women's 500m and Men's 1,000m)
• Skeleton
• *Ski Jumping (Mixed Team)
• *Snowboard (Men's Snowboard Slopestyle)
• *Speed Skating (Women's 1,500m)

Tuesday, Feb. 8

• *Alpine Skiing (Men's Super-G)
• *Biathlon (Men's 20km Individual)
• *Cross-Country Skiing (Men's Sprint Free and Women's Sprint Free)
• *Curling (Mixed Doubles)
• Figure Skating
• Freestyle
• *Skiing (Women's Freeski Big Air)
• Ice Hockey
• *Luge (Women's Singles)
• Nordic Combined
• Skeleton
• *Snowboard (Women's Parallel Giant Slalom and Men's Parallel Giant Slalom)
• *Speed Skating (Men's 1,500m)

Wednesday, Feb. 9

• *Alpine Skiing (Women's Slalom)
• Curling
• *Freestyle Skiing (Men's Freeski Big Air)
• Ice Hockey
• *Luge (Doubles)
• *Nordic Combined (Individual Gundersen Normal Hill/10km)
• *Short Track Speed Skating (Men's 1,500m)
• Skeleton
• Ski Jumping
• *Snowboard (Women's Snowboard Cross)

Thursday, Feb. 10

• *Alpine Skiing (Men's Alpine Combined)
• Bobsleigh
• *Cross-Country Skiing (Women's 10km Classic)
• Curling
• *Figure Skating (Men's Single Skating)
• *Freestyle Skiing (Mixed Team Aerials)
• Ice Hockey
• *Luge (Team Relay)
• Skeleton
• Ski Jumping
• *Snowboard (Men's Snowboard Cross and Women's Snowboard Halfpipe)
• *Speed Skating (Women's 5,000m)

Friday, Feb. 11

• *Alpine Skiing (Women's Super-G)
• *Biathlon (Women's 7.5km Sprint)
• Bobsleigh
• *Cross-Country Skiing (Men's 15km Classic)
• Curling
• Ice Hockey
• *Short Track Speed Skating (Women's 1,000m)
• *Skelton (Men) Ski Jumping
• *Snowboard (Men's Snowboard Halfpipe)
• *Speed Skating (Men's 10,000m)

Saturday, Feb. 12

• Alpine Skiing
• *Biathlon (Men's 10km Sprint)
• Bobsleigh
• *Cross-Country Skiing (Women's 4x5km Relay)
• Curling
• Figure Skating
• Ice Hockey
• Nordic Combined
• *Skeleton (Women)
• *Ski Jumping (Men's Large Hill Individual)
• *Snowboard (Mixed Team Snowboard Cross)
• *Speed Skating (Men's 500m)

Sunday, Feb. 13

• *Alpine Skiing (Men's Giant Slalom)
• *Biathlon (Men's 12.5km Pursuit and Women's 10km Pursuit)
• Bobsleigh
• *Cross-Country Skiing (Men's 4x10km Relay)
• Curling
• *Freestyle Skiing
• Ice Hockey
• Nordic Combined
• *Short Track Speed Skating (Women's 3,000m Relay and Men's 500m)
• Ski Jumping
• *Speed Skating (Women's 500m)

Monday, Feb. 14

• Alpine Skiing
• *Bobsleigh (Women's Monobob)
• Curling
• *Figure Skating (Ice Dance)
• *Freestyle Skiing (Women's Aerials and Women's Freeski Slopestyle)
• Ice Hockey
• Nordic Combined
• *Ski Jumping (Men's Team)
• Snowboard

Tuesday, Feb. 15

• *Alpine Skiing (Women's Downhill)
• *Biathlon (Men's 4x7.5km Relay)
• Curling
• Figure Skating
• *Freestyle Skiing (Men's Freeski Slopestyle)
• Ice Hockey
• *Nordic Combined (Individual Gundersen Large Hill/10km)
• *Snowboard (Women's Snowboard Big Air and Men's Snowboard Big Air)
• *Speed Skating (Women's Team Pursuit and Men's Team Pursuit)

Wednesday, Feb. 16

• *Alpine Skiing (Men's Slalom)
• *Biathlon (Women's 4x6km Relay)
• Bobsleigh
• *Cross-Country Skiing (Men's Team Sprint Classic and Women's Team Sprint Classic)
• Curling
• *Freestyle Skiing (Men's Aerials)
• *Ice Hockey (Women)
• Nordic Combined
• *Short Track Speed Skating (Women's 1,500m and Men's 5,000 Relay)

Thursday, Feb. 17

• *Alpine Skiing (Women's Alpine Combined)
• Bobsleigh
• Curling
• Figure Skating (Women's Single Skating)
• *Freestyle Skiing (Women's Ski Cross)
• *Ice Hockey (Women)
• *Nordic Combined (Team Gundersen Large Hill/4x5km)
• *Speed Skating (Women's 1,000m)

Friday, Feb. 18

• *Biathlon (Men's 15km Mass Start)
• Bobsleigh
• *Curling (Men)
• Figure Skating
• *Freestyle Skiing (Men's Ski Cross and Women's Freeski Halfpipe)
• Ice Hockey
• *Speed Skating (Men's 1,000m)

Saturday, Feb. 19

• *Alpine Skiing (Mixed Team Parallel)
• *Biathlon (Women's 12.5km Mass Start)
• *Bobsleigh (2-Woman)
• *Cross-Country Skiing (Men's 50km Mass Start Free)
• *Curling (Women and Men) Figure Skating (Pair Skating)
• *Freestyle Skiing (Men's Freeski Halfpipe) Ice Hockey (Men)
• *Speed Skating (Women's Mass Start and Men's Mass Start)

Sunday, Feb. 20

• *Bobsleigh (4-Man)
• *Cross-Country Skiing (Women's 30km Mass Start Free)
• *Curling (Women)
• *Ice Hockey (Men)

* denotes medal event(s)

All-Time Medal Count

1. Norway (368)
2. United States (305)
3. Germany (259)
4. Austria (232)
5. Canada (199)
6. Soviet Union (194)
7. Finland (167)
8. Sweden (158)
9. Switzerland (153)
10. Netherlands (130)

Athletes to Watch

Nathan Chen

Matthew Stockman/Getty Images

Nathan Chen will be looking to atone for a fifth-place finish in the men's competition at the 2018 Winter Olympics.

The 22-year-old posted the highest score in the free skate, but he was undone by a fall in the short program that dropped him to 17th before the second stage of the event. He did, however, help the United States collect a bronze in the team competition.

Chen is the three-time reigning world champion, and he became the first male skater since Dick Button in 1952 to win six straight gold medals at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in January.

Evan Lysacek (2010) is the only American skater to win men's singles gold after Scott Hamilton and Brian Boitano went back-to-back in 1984 and 1988, respectively.

As long as he avoids another catastrophe on the ice, there's a great chance Chen will join that group.

Kamila Valieva

Kamila Valieva doesn't turn 16 until April, yet she might be standing atop the medal podium when the women's singles competition concludes.

The Russian debuted in the senior Grand Prix circuit in October at Skate Canada and set world records in the free skate (180.89) and overall score (265.08) categories. She proceeded to win gold at the European Figure Skating Championships, and her short program score of 90.45 was another world record.

The question isn't whether Valieva can win gold in Beijing but rather whether she can put together a history-making performance while making it happen.

Mikaela Shiffrin

JURE MAKOVEC/Getty Images

Mikaela Shiffrin's reputation precedes her. She was a gold medalist in the slalom at the 2014 Winter Olympics before collecting gold and silver medals in Pyeongchang. She is also a six-time gold medalist in the World Championships.

The 26-year-old has already assembled a resume worthy of legendary proportions. Her 47 wins in slalom events are the most ever in one discipline.

In Beijing, Shiffrin's head-to-head battle with Petra Vlhova should be a lot of fun to watch. The Slovak was runner-up in women's alpine combined at the Alpine World Ski Championships 2021 but has bested the American before on the big stage.