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Calgary 1988 Olympics
Two weeks in February that put Calgary on the world map.
The XV Olympic Winter Games. February 13–28, 1988. 1,423 athletes, 57 nations, two billion television viewers. Eddie the Eagle. The Jamaican Bobsled Team. Witt over Thomas at the Saddledome. Boitano over Orser. The Soviets' last hockey gold. File what you remember.
Name an Olympic memory.
Where you were. What you saw. A line or two. Anonymous if you want.
Memories filed
0
Nations
57
Athletes
1,423
Events
46
The Database
The Calgary 1988 Olympics ledger.
The Wall
Calgarians' Olympic memories.
This wall is empty.
No memories filed yet. Be the first. Where were you in February 1988?
Editor's note: rather than seed this wall with fictional entries, we want it to grow honestly. Every entry on this page is real.
Olympics 101
The XV Olympic Winter Games, by the numbers.
01
Why Calgary, 1988.
Frank King and the Calgary Olympic Development Association won the bid in 1981 over Falun and Cortina. The IOC chose a city the world had to look up.
SOURCE · IOC
02
Eddie the Eagle.
Britain's only ski jumper. Last in both 70m and 90m. The IOC changed the rules after him. He's the spirit of the Games people still remember.
SOURCE · IOC
03
The Jamaican Bobsled Team.
Cool Runnings was real. They crashed at the bottom in Heat 3 and carried the sled across the finish line. Calgary cheered louder than for any winner.
SOURCE · IOC
04
The Battles of the Carmens and Brians.
Katarina Witt over Debi Thomas, both skating Carmen. Brian Boitano over Brian Orser, the closest men's final ever. Two Saddledome nights the city replays.
SOURCE · IOC
05
The Oval — still the fastest ice.
The Olympic Oval at the University of Calgary still hosts world-record speed skating. The single most-used Olympic legacy venue in the world.
SOURCE · Olympic Oval
06
The 2026 bid that died.
Calgary voted no on the 2026 Games in a 2018 plebiscite. The complicated relationship the city has with its Olympic identity.
SOURCE · City of Calgary
Directory
The Olympic venues — then and now.
Olympic Saddledome
Figure skating and ice hockey medal rounds. The building Witt won on. Now the Flames home, slated for demolition.
scotiabanksaddledome.com →
Olympic Oval
World's first indoor 400m speed skating oval. Still hosting world records.
olympicoval.ca →
Canada Olympic Park
Ski jumping, bobsleigh, luge. The jumps shut down in 2018. Hill still skis.
winsport.ca →
Canmore Nordic Centre
Cross-country, biathlon. Still active, still beautiful, still cold.
albertaparks.ca →
McMahon Stadium
Opening and closing ceremonies. The flame lit here February 13, 1988.
mcmahonstadium.com →
Nakiska
Alpine skiing venue. Still a Calgary day-trip resort.
skinakiska.com →
Glenbow Archives
The most complete archive of Calgary 1988 photography and records. On hiatus through 2026.
glenbow.org →
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