The Commonwealth Winter Games was a multi-sport event comprising winter sports, last held in 1970. Four editions of the Games were staged. The Winter Games were designed as a counterbalance to the Commonwealth Games, which focuses on summer sports, to accompany the Winter Olympics and Summer Olympic Games.
The Winter Games were founded by T.D. Richardson. The 1958 Commonwealth Winter Games were held in St. Moritz, Switzerland. This was the inaugural games for the winter edition. The 1962 Games were also held in St. Moritz, complementing the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Perth, Australia, and the 1966 event was held in St. Moritz as well, following the 1970 games, the idea was discontinued.
A scheme for organising the games was drawn up at the Commonwealth Games Federation 1959, where it was decided these would be recognised as "associated games" and be held in Europe to increase the number of competitors and to reduce costs - with many of the lead skaters and skiers already taking part in the European championships at this time.
A Winter Games was proposed for 2010 in India, complementing the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. The proposed venue was Gulmarg in Jammu and Kashmir, where the Indian National Winter Games had previously been held, but the idea did not come to fruition.
Note: records kept from the time are sparse, with many planned events returning no result. The reported results are confirmed and validated. Where a partial result is returned, the medal table reflects confirmed medals but doesn't record any missing medals.
The games were first discussed at the Commonwealth Games Federation General Assembly on December 2, 1956. The games took place between the 9th January 1958 to 19th January 1958.
Competing Nations: Competitors came from England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Rhodesia, Nyasaland, Hong Kong, Nigeria and Pakistan.
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The games once again took place in St Moritz, to attract the maximum number of skaters and skiers from the European tour. The games took place between the 16th January 1962 and 4th February 1962.
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NOTE: Robin Seel was recorded as a member of a Canadian sled despite being a British bobsledder. The medal is counted as a Canadian gold.
The third edition also took place in St Moritz. The games took place between the 26th January 1966 and 11th February 1966.
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NOTE: John Blockey and Mike Freeman are recorded as winning bronze in the 2-man for Malta, as they were based at RAF Luqa. They are also recorded as finishing in bronze position in the 4-man after joining a Canadian entry. They are recorded here as Malta in the 2-man and Canada in the 4-man.
The 1970 games marked a vastly reduced and last-ditch Winter Games. With the passing of Tyke Richardson in January 1971, the games sadly lost momentum and faded out of consciousness.
The final edition took place between the 21st December 1970 and the 23rd December 1970.
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