The Philippines competed in the Winter Olympic Games for the first time at the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo, Japan with two athletes who competed in alpine skiing. The country was also the first tropical nation and Southeast Asian country to feature in the Winter Olympics.
The Olympic attaché was Adelaide Nalundasan of the Embassy of the Philippines. There were two athletes representing the country, both in alpine skiing. Jorge R. Vargas was the representative for the Philippines in the International Olympic Committee.
Cousins Juan Cipriano and Ben Nanasca represented the Philippines in alpine skiing. They were adopted as teenagers by a family in New Zealand and were part of a development team funded by the Swiss government.