Nepal at the 2002 Winter Olympics Olympic competition at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. The nation did not take part in the next Summer Olympics, but have participated in every Summer Olympic Games since the 1972 edition. Despite this, these Salt Lake City Games were their first appearance in the Winter Olympic Games, and they have never won an Olympic medal as of 2018. The 2002 Winter Olympics were held from 8–24 February 2002; a total of 2,399 athletes took part representing 77 National Olympic Committees. The only athlete sent by Nepal to the Salt Lake Olympics was Jay Khadka, competing in cross-country skiing. He
Winter Olympic Games champion, while Kerrigan won the silver medal. Johann Olav Koss of Norway won three gold medals, coming first in all of the distance speed skating events. 13-year-old Kim Yoon-Mi became the youngest-ever Olympic gold medallist when South Korea won the women's 3,000 meter speed skating relay. Russia won the most events, with eleven gold medals, while Norway achieved 26 podium finishes, collecting the most medals overall on home ground. Juan Antonio Samaranch described Lillehammer as "the best Olympic Winter Games ever" in his closing ceremony speech. The 1998 Winter Olympics were held in the Japanese city of Nagano and were