Venezuela at the 1998 Winter Olympics but never won a medal at the Winter Olympics. These Winter Olympics were held from 7–22 February 1998; a total of 2,176 athletes represented 72 National Olympic Committees. The only athlete Venezuela sent to Nagano was a luger, Iginia Boccalandro. She was the flag bearer for the opening ceremony. Iginia Boccalandro was 36 years old at the time of the Nagano Olympics, and was making her Olympic debut. Before the Games, the Salt Lake City, Utah resident claimed that "I'm too old and fat"; she said her real goal was the 2002 Winter Olympics, by which time she would have
China at the Olympics continued, with Hong Kong competing independently from the rest of the nation under the name "Hong Kong, China". The People's Republic of China has hosted the Games on one occasion, with a second Games scheduled for 2022. Beijing will be the first city to host both Summer and Winter Olympics. Chinese athletes have won medals in most of the current Summer Olympics sports. The exceptions are triathlon, equestrian, rugby and water polo. Chinese athletes have won medals in 6 out of 15 current Winter Olympics sports. Most of the golds and half of the medals come from the sport of