1976 Winter Olympics elections. Whistler would go on to be associated with neighbouring Vancouver's successful bid for the 2010 games. Salt Lake City offered to host the games, but the IOC, still reeling from the Denver rejection, declined and selected Innsbruck to host the 1976 Winter Olympics, which had hosted the 1964 Winter Olympics games twelve years earlier, on 5 February 1973. Salt Lake City would then host the Winter Olympics in 2002. The mascot of the 1976 Winter Olympics was "Schneemann", German for "snowman", a snowman in a red Tyrolean hat. Designed by Walter Pötsch, Schneeman was purported to represent the 1976
Speed skating at the 1980 Winter Olympics Speed skating at the 1980 Winter Olympics Speed skating at the 1980 Winter Olympics, was held from 9 February to 18 February. Nine events were contested at James B. Sheffield Olympic Skating Rink. The United States led the medal table with five gold medals, thanks to Eric Heiden's sweep of the men's events, which made him the first, and as of 2018, only, athlete to win five gold medals at a Winter Games. Heiden led the individual medal table, while the most successful woman was Nataliya Petrusyova of the Soviet Union, who won one gold and one bronze medal. All