Drug scandals, overturned Jamaicans and Adolf Hitler have all contributed to the colourful history of the Winter Olympics. Here Press Association takes a look back at highlights from the previous Games.

1924 CHAMONIX
A total of 258 athletes from 16 nations took part in the inaugural Winter Games and the first medal was won by the American Charles Jewtraw in the 500m speed-skating.

1928 ST MORITZ
Sonja Henie won her first of three consecutive gold medals in the women’s figure skating, making her the youngest woman to win a gold medal – a record she would hold for 70 years.

1932 LAKE PLACID
Bobsledder Eddie Eagan became the first man to win golds at both Summer and Winter Games having won the light-heavyweight boxing title in Antwerp 12 years earlier.

1936 GARMISCH:
The Games were officially opened by Adolf Hitler, who watched as Henie won her third straight figure skating gold before announcing she would be turning professional.

1948 ST MORITZ
American Dick Button was the first man to complete a double axel as he won the figure skating competition, while compatriot John Heaton won his second skeleton medal, 20 years after his first.

1952 OSLO
Button made more history, completing the first triple loop as he retained his figure skating crown. The GB team wore black armbands at the opening ceremony to mark the death four days earlier of King George VI.

1956 CORTINA D’AMPEZZO
Austria’s Toni Sailer became the first man to win all three alpine events in a single Games, taking all three golds by huge margins, including one of 6.2 seconds in the giant-slalom.

1960 SQUAW VALLEY
A row over the definition of amateurism, particularly in relation to the Soviet ice hockey team, was eased when the United States won a surprise gold medal, beating the Soviets 3-2 in the medal round.

1964 INNSBRUCK
Soviet speed-skater Lydia Skoblikova was the undisputed star of the Innsbruck Games, sweeping the board to become the first athlete to win four gold medals at a single Winter Olympics.

1968 GRENOBLE
French great Jean-Claude Killy won three golds but his slalom triumph was shrouded in triumph after rival Karl Schranz claimed he had been impeded by a spectator. Allowed to race again, Schranz beat Killy’s time, but was subsequently disqualified.

1972 SAPPORO
Amid more controversy over the definition of professionalism, Karl Schranz was banned due to an endorsement deal, while Canada refused to send an ice hockey due to the effective professionalism of rivals from the Eastern Bloc.

1976 GRENOBLE
Austrian great Franz Klammer announced his arrival on the global scene with a magnificent performance in the men’s downhill, beating reigning champion Bernard Russi by 0.33 seconds to clinch gold for the host nation.

1980 LAKE PLACID
The Lake Placid Games will for ever be remembered for the so-called ‘Miracle on Ice’, in which a young and inexperienced American ice hockey team managed to deny the Soviet Union a seemingly inevitable fifth consecutive gold.

1984: SARAJEVO
A streak of perfect sixes launched British ice dance duo Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean
to stardom to the tune of Ravel’s Bolero. The judges also fell for an East German teenager called Katarina Witt.

1988 CALGARY
Italian skier Alberto Tomba and Finnish ski-jumper Matti Nykanen were the real stars but Calgary saw the unforgettable antics of Eddie ‘The Eagle’ Edwards as well as the debut of the Jamaican bobsleigh team, which inspired the hit movie ‘Cool Runnings’.

1992 ALBERTVILLE
Norwegian cross-country skiier Bjorn Daehlie won three golds while Finnish ski-jumper Toni Nieminen won two golds and one bronze medal at the age of just 16.

1994 LILLEHAMMER
The Lillehammer build-up was hit by the revelation that the bodyguard of figure skater Tonya Harding had attacked rival Nancy Kerrigan with an iron bar prior to the US trials. Both skaters competed in the Games, crowd favourite Kerrigan claiming silver while Harding finished eighth.

1998 NAGANO
Bjorn Daehlie won three more gold medals to take his all-time tally to a record eight. A relaxation of professional rules allowed NHL stars to compete in the ice hockey competition for the first
time.

2002 SALT LAKE CITY
The Games were hit by a figure skating scandal, which saw Canadian pair Jamie Sale and David Pelletier upgraded to share gold with Russians Yelena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze after an unprecedented outcry over the performance of the judges.

2006 TURIN
Home hero Giorgio Rocca crashed out of the men’s slalom while American snowboarder Lindsay Jacobellis fell yards from the finish line in the women’s snowboard-cross after opting to try an unnecessary trick on the final jump.

2010 VANCOUVER
The Games were tainted by the tragic death of Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili, following a crash in training prior to the opening ceremony. Norwegian cross-country skier Marit Bjoergen topped the medal standings with five.

2014 SOCHI
The Sochi Games will for ever be tainted by a continuing doping scandal which saw many genuine athletes denied the medals they deserved. Lizzy Yarnold dominated the women’s skeleton event to win a second straight gold for Great Britain.