1964 Winter Olympic Games

The 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck were threatened by a lack of snow. The Austrian army rushed to the rescue, carving out 20,000 ice bricks from a mountain top and transporting them to the bobsled and luge runs. They also carried 40,000 cubic meters of snow to the Alpine skiing courses. When rain caused further havoc ten days before the Opening Ceremony, the army packed down the slopes by hand and foot. Politically, the Games were notable because East and West Germany entered a combined team. Lydia Skoblikova won all four women’s speed skating events to become the first athlete to win four gold medals in one Winter Olympics. Klavdiya Boyarskikh earned three gold medals in cross-country skiing and, on the men’s side, Eero Mäntyranta won two. Sisters Christine and Marielle Goitschel finished first and second in both the slalom and the giant slalom. Ski jumping gained a second event, and the sport of luge made its Olympic debut.