Commonwealth Winter Games

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.

History

The Winter Games were founded by T.D. Richardson.^[1] The 1958 Commonwealth Winter Games^[2] were held in St. Moritz, Switzerland.^[3] This was the inaugural games for the winter edition.^[1] The 1962 Games were also held in St. Moritz, complementing the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Perth, Australia,^[4] and the 1966 event was held in St. Moritz as well,^[5] following the 1970 games,^[6] 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.^[7]

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,^[8] where the Indian National Winter Games had previously been held,^[9] but the idea did not come to fruition.

List of Commonwealth Winter Games

Edition	Year	Location
I	1958	St. Moritz, Switzerland
II	1962	St. Moritz, Switzerland
III	1966	St. Moritz, Switzerland
IV	1970	St. Moritz, Switzerland

Participating Nations

Australia
Canada
England
Hong Kong
Malta
New Zealand
Nigeria
Northern Ireland
Nyasaland
Pakistan
Rhodesia
Scotland
Wales ^[10]

Overall Medal Table

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.^[11]

Nations	Gold	Silver	Bronze
England	20	19	20
Canada	10	6	6
Scotland	4	3	3
New Zealand	2	4	4
Australia	1	0	0
Wales	0	2	0
Malta	0	1	1
NIR	0	1	0
Pakistan	0	0	1
	37	38	35

1958 Commonwealth Winter Games

The games were first discussed at the Commonwealth Games Federation General Assembly on 2 December 1956. The games took place between 9 January 1958 to 19 January 1958.

OC	Opening ceremony	●	Event competitions	1	Event finals	CC	Closing ceremony

January 1958	09 Thu	10 Fri	11 Sat	12 Sun	13 Mon	14 Tue	15 Wed	16 Thu	17 Fri	18 Sat	19 Sun
Alpine Skiing	3
Bobsleigh			●	1						●	1
Figure Skating								1	1
Skeleton	●	1
Daily medal events	3	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	0	1
Cumulative total	3	4	4	5	5	5	5	6	7	7	8
January 1958	09 Thu	10 Fri	11 Sat	12 Sun	13 Mon	14 Tue	15 Wed	16 Thu	17 Fri	18 Sat	19 Sun

Sport	Event	Gold	Silver	Bronze
Alpine Skiing	Men's Downhill	John Semmelink	Shaun Fripp	Jim Quarles
Alpine Skiing	Men's Slalom	John Platt	Arnold Midgley	John Semmelink
Alpine Skiing	Men's Combined	John Semmelink	Arnold Midgley	John Platt
Bobsleigh	2 man	Stuart Parkinson /Chris Williams	Henry Taylor/Robin Dixon	John Wodehouse/Mike Holliday
Bobsleigh	4 man	Norman Barclay/Chris Skinner/Peter Forsdyke/R.Dickson	Stuart Parkinson/Tony Nash/A.Dawes/Chris Williams	UNKNOWN
Figure Skating	Men's Singles	Bill Cherrell	David Clements	UNKNOWN
Figure Skating	Women's Singles	Anne Reynolds	Doreen Denny	Mildred Atherley
Skeleton	Men's Singles	Colin Mitchell	Tony Claridge	Dare Wilson

1962 Commonwealth Winter Games

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 16 January 1962 and 4 February 1962.

OC	Opening ceremony	●	Event competitions	1	Event finals	CC	Closing ceremony

January 1962	16 Tue	17 Wed	18 Thu	19 Fri	20 Sat	21 Sun	22 Mon	23 Tue	24 Wed	25 Thu	26 Fri	27 Sat	28 Sun	29 Mon	30 Tue	31 Wed	1 Thu	2 Fri	3 Sat	4 Sun
Alpine Skiing	3	5
Bobsleigh																	●	1	●	1
Cross Country			1
Figure Skating																2
Skeleton																			●	1
Daily medal events	3	5	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	1	0	2
Cumulative total	3	8	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	11	11	12	12	14
January 1962	16 Tue	17 Wed	18 Thu	19 Fri	20 Sat	21 Sun	22 Mon	23 Tue	24 Wed	25 Thu	26 Fri	27 Sat	28 Sun	29 Mon	30 Tue	31 Wed	1 Thu	2 Fri	3 Sat	4 Sun

Sport	Event	Gold	Silver	Bronze
Alpine Skiing	Men's Downhill	Lyn Cullis	Renauld Argouin	Richard Hampton
Alpine Skiing	Men's Team Downhill	Lyn Cullis/Russell Legare	Piers, Baron de Westenholz/Charles, Count de Westenholz/Richard Salm	Ian McCormick/J. Spencer/ UNKNOWN
Alpine Skiing	Men's Slalom	Lyn Cullis	Russell Legare	Richard Hampton
Alpine Skiing	Men's Team Slalom	Piers, Baron de Westenholz/Charles, Count de Westenholz/Richard Salm	UNKNOWN	UNKNOWN
Alpine Skiing	Men's Combined	Lyn Cullis	Richard Hampton	Renauld Argouin
Alpine Skiing	Women's Downhill	Anna Asheshov	Gina Hathorn	Tessa Dredge
Alpine Skiing	Women's Slalom	Gina Hathorn	Penelope Walker	Diana Tomkinson
Alpine Skiing	Women's Combined	Gina Hathorn	Diana Tomkinson	Penelope Walker
Bobsleigh	2 man	Tony Nash/Guy Renwick	W.Walker/D.Willoughby	David Evans/MS Boyle
Bobsleigh	4 man	Robin Seel/M. F. Gordon / P. Levesque / David Hobart	Bill McCowen / Pat Martin / Rupert Lycett-Green / Andrew Hedges	UNKNOWN
Cross Country	Men's 15K Classical	John Moore	John Dent	Ralph Walker
Figure Skating	Men's Singles	Malcolm Cannon	Hywel Evans	Alan Potter
Figure Skating	Women's Singles	Jacqueline Harbord	Heather Moir	Wendy Paton
Skeleton	Men's Singles	Colin Mitchell	Lesley Boyer	Peter Fishbourne

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.

1966 Commonwealth Winter Games

The third edition also took place in St Moritz. The games took place between 26 January 1966 and 11 February 1966.

OC	Opening ceremony	●	Event competitions	1	Event finals	CC	Closing ceremony

January 1966	26 Wed	27 Thu	28 Fri	29 Sat	30 Sun	31 Mon	1 Tue	2 Wed	3 Thu	4 Fri	5 Sat	6 Sun	7 Mon	8 Tue	9 Wed	10 Thu	11 Fri
Alpine Skiing				6
Bobsleigh													●	1	●	1
Curling	●	●	1
Figure Skating																	2
Skeleton												1
Daily medal events	0	0	1	6	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	1	2
Cumulative total	0	0	1	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	8	8	9	9	10	12
January 1962	26 Wed	27 Thu	28 Fri	29 Sat	30 Sun	31 Mon	1 Tue	2 Wed	3 Thu	4 Fri	5 Sat	6 Sun	7 Mon	8 Tue	9 Wed	10 Thu	11 Fri

Sport	Event	Gold	Silver	Bronze
Alpine Skiing	Men's Downhill	David Freeth	Peter Norman	David Borradaile
Alpine Skiing	Men's Slalom	Peter Norman	Peter Goldstern	Guy Whitley
Alpine Skiing	Men's Combined	Peter Norman	Peter Goldstern	Guy Whitley
Alpine Skiing	Women's Downhill	Anne Reid	Mary Kerr	Kathy Guy
Alpine Skiing	Women's Slalom	Gina Hathorn	Anne Reid	Kathy Guy
Alpine Skiing	Women's Combined	Anne Reid	Kathy Guy	Carol Lowry
Bobsleigh	2 man	Tony Nash/Guy Renwick	John Lewis/Stephen Daniel	John Blockey/Mike Freeman
Bobsleigh	4 man	UNKNOWN	UNKNOWN	UNKNOWN/John Blockey/Mike Freeman
Curling	Men's Team	Wing Commander George Robertson,Joe Zedan,Ron Found and Scotty Miller	Bill Black, Davie Kennedy,Jock Marr and Jim Adams	Dan Kerr, Jim Kerr, Ron Thornton and Ken Duncan
Figure Skating	Men's Singles	Harold Williams	Michael Edmonds	Alan Williamson
Figure Skating	Women's Singles	Diana Clifton-Peach	Sally-Anne Stapleford	Patricia Dodd
Skeleton	Men's Singles	Colin Mitchell	Michael Thomson	BAT Jennings

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.

1970 Commonwealth Winter Games

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. ^[12]

The final edition took place between 21 December 1970 and 23 December 1970.

OC	Opening ceremony	●	Event competitions	1	Event finals	CC	Closing ceremony

December 1970	21 Mon	22 Tue	23 Wed
Alpine Skiing	2		2
Daily medal events	2	0	2
Cumulative total	2	0	4
December 1970	21 Mon	22 Tue	23 Wed

Sport	Event	Gold	Silver	Bronze
Alpine Skiing	Men's Slalom	Aidan Ballantyne	Royston Varley	Chris Wormersley
Alpine Skiing	Men's Giant Slalom	Royston Varley	Aidan Ballantyne	Iain Finlayson
Alpine Skiing	Women's Slalom	Carol Blackwood	Antoinette Betts	Helen Carmichael
Alpine Skiing	Women's Giant Slalom	Carol Blackwood	Helen Jamieson	Antoinette Betts

References

^ ^a ^b Semanticus.info, T.D. Richardson Archived 2014-07-26 at the Wayback Machine (accessed 7 July 2012)
^ CBC News, Canadian Ski Museum in trouble, 15 March 2011, Ashley Burke (accessed 7 July 2012)
^ NZ Collector Services St. Moritz 1958 Commonwealth Winter Games silver medal Archived 2017-04-16 at the Wayback Machine (accessed 7 July 2012)
^ Biography of Christine Smith at sports-reference.com
^ Antiques Reporter AU, St. Mortiz 1966 Commonwealth Winter Games bronze medal (accessed 7 July 2012)
^ Cowan, Bob (4 September 2018). "Curling History: How Scotland Fared at the Commonwealth Winter Games". Curling History. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
^ Duncan, K.S. (16 December 1958). "Minutes of Meeting of the Advisory Committee at the Over-seas League on Monday 6th July 1959". British Empire and Commonwealth Games Federation. 1 (1): Appendix A.
^ "Artificial snow to extend winter games season in Gulmarg". Hindustan Times. 25 February 2007.
^ "2010 Commonwealth winter sports to be held in Kashmir: Azad". Press Trust of India. 6 January 2006.
^ https://cabinetroom.wordpress.com/2014/02/05/the-commonwealth-winter-games/
^ https://intersportstats.com/competition_types/553
^ "The Commonwealth Games Federation". Commonwealth Sport.

External links

[Semanticus-Richardson-1] Semanticus.info, T.D. Richardson Archived 2014-07-26 at the Wayback Machine (accessed 7 July 2012)

[2] CBC News, Canadian Ski Museum in trouble, 15 March 2011, Ashley Burke (accessed 7 July 2012)

[3] NZ Collector Services St. Moritz 1958 Commonwealth Winter Games silver medal Archived 2017-04-16 at the Wayback Machine (accessed 7 July 2012)

[4] Biography of Christine Smith at sports-reference.com

[5] Antiques Reporter AU, St. Mortiz 1966 Commonwealth Winter Games bronze medal (accessed 7 July 2012)

[6] Cowan, Bob (4 September 2018). "Curling History: How Scotland Fared at the Commonwealth Winter Games". Curling History. Retrieved 9 March 2026.

[7] Duncan, K.S. (16 December 1958). "Minutes of Meeting of the Advisory Committee at the Over-seas League on Monday 6th July 1959". British Empire and Commonwealth Games Federation. 1 (1): Appendix A.

[8] "Artificial snow to extend winter games season in Gulmarg". Hindustan Times. 25 February 2007.

[9] "2010 Commonwealth winter sports to be held in Kashmir: Azad". Press Trust of India. 6 January 2006.

[10] ttps://cabinetroom.wordpress.com/2014/02/05/the-commonwealth-winter-games/

[11] ttps://intersportstats.com/competition_types/553

[12] "The Commonwealth Games Federation". Commonwealth Sport.

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v t e Commonwealth sports championships
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Commonwealth Games - Commonwealth Youth Games - Commonwealth Winter Games - Commonwealth Esports Championships

v t e Commonwealth Games
CGF Bids CGAs Participating nations Commonwealth Day Inter-Empire Championships King's Baton Relay Medal table Sports Records Venues Mascots Results Winter Games Paraplegic Games Esports Championships
Commonwealth Games	1930 Hamilton 1934 London 1938 Sydney 1950 Auckland 1954 Vancouver 1958 Cardiff 1962 Perth 1966 Kingston 1970 Edinburgh 1974 Christchurch 1978 Edmonton 1982 Brisbane 1986 Edinburgh 1990 Auckland 1994 Victoria 1998 Kuala Lumpur 2002 Manchester 2006 Melbourne 2010 Delhi 2014 Glasgow 2018 Gold Coast 2022 Birmingham 2026 Glasgow 2030 Amdavad 2034 TBD
Commonwealth Youth Games	2000 Edinburgh 2004 Bendigo 2008 Pune 2011 Isle of Man 2015 Samoa 2017 Nassau 2023 Trinidad and Tobago 2027 Malta
Commonwealth Winter Games	1958 St. Moritz 1962 St. Moritz 1966 St. Moritz 1970 St. Moritz
Commonwealth Paraplegic Games	1962 Perth 1966 Kingston 1970 Edinburgh 1974 Dunedin
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