Fiji at the 2002 Winter Olympics first entered the Olympic competition at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. The nation did not enter a Winter Olympic Games until Calgary in 1988. Fiji also participated in the 1994 Winter Olympics, making the Salt Lake City Games the nation's third Winter Olympics appearance. The 2002 Fijian delegation consisted of a single alpine skier, Laurence Thoms. He was also the Fijian flagbearer for both the opening and closing ceremonies. , this was the most recent time Fiji has participated in a Winter Games. At a New Year's Eve party in 1998, a group of Fijians had discussed how
Winter Olympic Games City, previously a candidate for the 1972 Winter Olympics, then put itself forward, but the IOC opted instead to invite Innsbruck to host the 1976 Games, as most of the infrastructure from the 1964 Games had been maintained. Despite only having half the usual time to prepare for the Games, Innsbruck accepted the invitation to replace Denver in February 1973. Two Olympic flames were lit because it was the second time that the Austrian town had hosted the Winter Games. The 1976 Games featured the first combination bobsleigh and luge track, in neighbouring Igls. The Soviet Union won its fourth