The International Olympic Committee has decided to host the Winter Olympic Games in Grenoble. This city became the second city in France after Chamonix to host winter sports events of this level.
The 1968 Winter Olympics were a watershed moment in the sport. The most important innovation was introduced - the doping test. It is known that the first substances that affect athletic performance existed and could be used even before World War II. The post-war successes of pharmacology could turn the Olympics into a competition for doctors with extremely unpleasant consequences for athletes. Subsequently, doping tests were improved following the invention of new prohibited drugs.
Representatives of 37 teams arrived in Grenoble. For the first time, two separate groups of German athletes could be seen at the games - from the GDR and from the FRG. Also sportsmen from Morocco got to the games for the first time. The athletes of this country became the only representatives of the African continent at the games.
Norway took the first place in the unofficial ranking of countries in terms of the number of medals. The Soviet Union lagged behind her by only one award. Gold was awarded to the Soviet hockey team, as well as the biathlon team. High results, as in the past Olympiads, were shown by figure skaters from the USSR. Gold was won by a pair of Lyudmila Belousova and Oleg Protopopov, and silver - Tatiana Zhuk and Alexander Gorelik.
The third place went to the host of the competition - France. The real star of the French national team was the skier Jean-Claude Killy, who won 3 gold medals.
The United States came out with rather modest results, finishing in only 9th place. The only gold medal for the national team was won by figure skater Peggy Fleming. Another skater, Tim Wood, became a silver medalist. American skaters also received several medals.
The Olympic Games were not without scandals. In particular, due to violation of the rules of the competition, 4 sledges from the GDR were disqualified, 3 of which had previously taken leading positions in the final of the competition.
