SafekipediaUnited States at the 1968 Winter Olympics
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The United States joined the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France. This was a large event with athletes from many countries competing in winter sports. The Winter Olympics occur every four years, and in 1968, Grenoble hosted the games. Many talented athletes from the United States worked hard to earn medals in activities such as skiing and ice skating.
Medalists
Further information: 1968 Winter Olympics medal table
Athletes from the United States won medals at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France. The names of the medal winners are shown in bold below.
Alpine skiing
Main article: Alpine skiing at the 1968 Winter Olympics
The United States sent athletes to compete in alpine skiing at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France. Both men and women from the U.S. took part in these events.
| Athlete | Event | Heat 1 | Heat 2 | Final | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Run 1 | Run 2 | Total | |||||||||
| Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | ||
| Jim Barrows | Downhill | —N/a | DNF | ||||||||
| Jere Elliott | DNF | ||||||||||
| Billy Kidd | 2:03.40 | 18 | |||||||||
| Dennis McCoy | 2:04.82 | 21 | |||||||||
| Rick Chaffee | Giant slalom | —N/a | 1:46.44 | 13 | 1:49.75 | 14 | 3:36.19 | 15 | |||
| Jimmy Heuga | 1:45.46 | 7 | 1:48.43 | 9 | 3:33.89 | 10 | |||||
| Billy Kidd | 1:45.91 | 8 | 1:46.46 | 1 | 3:32.37 | 5 | |||||
| Spider Sabich | 1:46.34 | 12 | 1:49.81 | 15 | 3:36.15 | 14 | |||||
| Rick Chaffee | Slalom | 54.28 | 1 QF | Bye | 49.95 | 10 | 51.24 | 10 | 1:41.19 | 9 | |
| Jimmy Heuga | 52.34 | 1 QF | Bye | 49.96 | 11 | 51.01 | 9 | 1:40.97 | 7 | ||
| Billy Kidd | 53.37 | 1 QF | Bye | DNF | |||||||
| Spider Sabich | 53.52 | 2 QF | Bye | 49.75 | 4 | 50.74 | 7 | 1:40.49 | 5 | ||
| Athlete | Event | Run 1 | Run 2 | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | ||
| Karen Budge | Downhill | —N/a | DNS | ||||
| Suzy Chaffee | 1:48.50 | 28 | |||||
| Kiki Cutter | 1:44.94 | 17 | |||||
| Sandy Shellworth | 1:46.53 | 21 | |||||
| Wendy Allen | Giant slalom | —N/a | 2:00.03 | 22 | |||
| Suzy Chaffee | 1:58.38 | 17 | |||||
| Kiki Cutter | 1:59.52 | 21 | |||||
| Judy Nagel | 1:57.39 | 12 | |||||
| Wendy Allen | Slalom | DSQ | |||||
| Kiki Cutter | DSQ | ||||||
| Rosie Fortna | DSQ | ||||||
| Judy Nagel | 40.19 | 1 | DSQ | ||||
Biathlon
Main article: Biathlon at the 1968 Winter Olympics
The United States joined the biathlon event at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France.
| Athlete | Event | Time | Misses | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jonathan Chaffee | Individual | 1:34:21.1 | 11 (3+2+4+2) | 49 |
| Bill Spencer | 1:30:17.7 | 10 (2+3+1+4) | 37 | |
| Ralph Wakley | 1:27:32.9 | 5 (1+1+3+0) | 27 | |
| Edward Williams | 1:32:24.5 | 9 (2+5+0+2) | 45 | |
| John Ehrensbeck Bill Spencer Ralph Wakley Edward Williams | Relay | 2:28:35.5 | 8 | 8 |
Bobsleigh
Main article: Bobsleigh at the 1968 Winter Olympics
The United States joined the bobsleigh events at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France. U.S. athletes raced against teams from many countries on the ice.
| Athletes | Event | Run 1 | Run 2 | Run 3 | Run 4 | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | ||
| Howard Clifton Michael Luce | Two-man | 1:12.10 | 14 | 1:12.18 | 10 | 1:11.88 | 9 | 1:13.15 | 15 | 4:49.31 | 11 |
| Paul Lamey Robert Huscher | 1:11.30 | 8 | 1:11.54 | 4 | 1:11.04 | 6 | 1:12.15 | 9 | 4:46.03 | 6 | |
| Bill Hickey Howard Clifton Michael Luce Paul Savage | Four-man | 1:11.45 | 14 | 1:08.92 | 14 | —N/a | 2:20.37 | 15 | |||
| Boris Said David Dunn Robert Crowley Phil Duprey | 1:11.08 | 11 | 1:08.48 | 10 | 2:19.56 | 10 | |||||
Cross-country skiing
Main article: Cross-country skiing at the 1968 Winter Olympics
The United States sent athletes to compete in cross-country skiing at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France. This event tested the skiers' skills in long-distance races on snowy trails.
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Larry Damon | Men's 15 km | 55:07.2 | 55 |
| Mike Elliott | 52:40.8 | 41 | |
| Mike Gallagher | 52:02.4 | 34 | |
| Bob Gray | 53:24.8 | 48 | |
| Mike Elliott | Men's 30 km | 1:42:22.6 | 29 |
| Mike Gallagher | 1:41:58.2 | 27 | |
| Charles Kellogg | 1:50:03.7 | 51 | |
| Jon Lufkin | 1:51:21.2 | 55 | |
| Larry Damon | Men's 50 km | 2:41:25.2 | 32 |
| Mike Elliott | 2:40:38.5 | 30 | |
| Mike Gallagher | 2:36:26.1 | 22 | |
| Charles Kellogg | 2:44:00.4 | 36 | |
| John Bower Mike Elliott Mike Gallagher Bob Gray | Men's 4 × 10 km relay | 2:21:30.4 | 12 |
Figure skating
Main article: Figure skating at the 1968 Winter Olympics
Ladies' singles skater Peggy Fleming did very well after the required steps and won the top score from all nine judges. Her win was the first gold medal for an American after a sad event in 1961, and it started a great time for American figure skating.
Individual
Mixed
| Athlete | Event | CF | FS | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Rank | Points | Places | Rank | ||
| John Misha Petkevich | Men's singles | 8 | 4 | 1806.2 | 56 | 6 |
| Gary Visconti | 6 | 5 | 1810.2 | 52 | 5 | |
| Tim Wood | 2 | 3 | 1891.6 | 17 |  | |
| Peggy Fleming | Ladies' singles | 1 | 1 | 1970.5 | 9 |  |
| Janet Lynn | 14 | 6 | 1698.7 | 90 | 9 | |
| Albertina Noyes | 5 | 7 | 1797.3 | 40 | 4 | |
| Athlete | Event | SP | FS | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Rank | Points | Places | Rank | ||
| Cynthia Kauffman Ronald Kauffman | Pairs | 5 | 7 | 297.0 | 58 | 6 |
| JoJo Starbuck Kenneth Shelley | 14 | 12 | 276.0 | 121 | 13 | |
| Sandi Sweitzer Roy Wagelein | 8 | 6 | 294.5 | 64.5 | 7 | |
Ice hockey
Main article: Ice hockey at the 1968 Winter Olympics
The United States joined the ice hockey event at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France. The team was led by coach Murray Williamson. They played many matches against teams from other countries.
| Team | Event | First round | Medal round | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Rank | ||
| United States men | Men's tournament | Bye |  CzechoslovakiaL 1–5 |  SwedenL 3–4 |  Soviet UnionL 2–10 |  CanadaL 2–3 |  West GermanyW 8–1 |  East GermanyW 6–4 |  FinlandT 1–1 | 6 |
| Rank | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Soviet Union | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 48 | 10 | 12 |
| 2 | Czechoslovakia | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 33 | 17 | 11 |
| 3 | Canada | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 28 | 15 | 10 |
| 4 | Sweden | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 23 | 18 | 9 |
| 5 | Finland | 7 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 17 | 23 | 7 |
| 6 |  United States | 7 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 23 | 28 | 5 |
| 7 | West Germany | 7 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 13 | 39 | 2 |
| 8 | East Germany | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 13 | 48 | 0 |
Luge
Main article: Luge at the 1968 Winter Olympics
The United States joined the luge events at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France. Luge is a sport where athletes race down an icy track on small sleds.
| Athlete | Event | Run 1 | Run 2 | Run 3 | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | ||
| Mike Hessel | Singles | 1:00.00 | 29 | 1:00.46 | 32 | 1:00.16 | 29 | 3:00.62 | 30 |
| Kim Layton | 59.73 | 27 | 59.45 | 23 | 59.46 | 24 | 2:58.64 | 26 | |
| James Murray | 1:00.34 | 32 | 59.94 | 29 | 59.72 | 26 | 3:00.00 | 28 | |
| Robin Partch | 1:30.36 | 47 | 59.78 | 28 | 59.53 | 25 | 3:29.67 | 46 | |
| Mike Hessel Jim Moriarty | Doubles | DNS | —N/a | DNS | |||||
| Athlete | Event | Run 1 | Run 2 | Run 3 | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | ||
| Sheila Johansen | Singles | 51.21 | 15 | 51.90 | 19 | 52.36 | 18 | 2:35.47 | 17 |
| Kathleen Ann Roberts-Homstad | 50.62 | 12 | 51.04 | 15 | 51.94 | 15 | 2:33.60 | 14 | |
| Ellen Williams | 51.67 | 16 | 51.09 | 16 | 52.39 | 19 | 2:35.15 | 16 | |
Nordic combined
Main article: Nordic combined at the 1968 Winter Olympics
| Athlete | Event | Ski Jumping | Cross-country | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jump 1 | Jump 2 | Points | Rank | Time | Points | Rank | Points | Rank | ||
| John Bower | Individual | 104.2 | 101.0 | 205.2 | 14 | 51:00.1 | 205.96 | 16 | 411.16 | 13 |
| Georg Krog | 105.4 | 106.8 | 212.2 | 11 | 53:55.9 | 171.56 | 33 | 383.76 | 22 | |
| Jim Miller | 85.1 | 86.5 | 171.6 | 35 | 50:56.0 | 206.78 | 15 | 378.38 | 26 | |
| Tom Upham | 92.2 | 90.0 | 182.2 | 31 | 56:30.5 | 142.97 | 40 | 325.17 | 39 | |
Ski jumping
Main article: Ski jumping at the 1968 Winter Olympics
The United States joined the ski jumping events at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France. Athletes from many countries tried to see who could jump the farthest and land safely.
| Athlete | Event | Jump 1 | Jump 2 | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Distance | Points | Distance | Points | Points | Rank | ||
| Bill Bakke | Normal hill | 69.5 | 90.0 | 70.0 | 90.8 | 180.8 | 40 |
| John Balfanz | 72.5 | 97.8 | 68.5 | 91.9 | 189.7 | 33 | |
| Jay Rand | 70.0 | 85.8 | 70.5 | 92.6 | 178.4 | 42 | |
| Adrian Watt | 71.0 | 86.9 | 68.0 | 87.1 | 174.0 | 44 | |
| Bill Bakke | Large hill | 90.5 | 90.1 | 87.5 | 85.4 | 175.5 | 34 |
| John Balfanz | 84.5 | 83.7 | 85.5 | 86.1 | 169.8 | 42 | |
| Jay Martin | 85.0 | 81.4 | 85.0 | 82.4 | 163.8 | 43 | |
| Jay Rand | 90.0 | 90.9 | 86.0 | 83.8 | 174.7 | 35 | |
Speed skating
Main article: Speed skating at the 1968 Winter Olympics
The United States joined in speed skating at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France. U.S. athletes raced in events for both men and women.
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neil Blatchford | 500 m | 40.7 | 5 |
| Tom Gray | 41.6 | 21 | |
| Terry McDermott | 40.5 | | |
| John Wurster | 40.7 | 5 | |
| Roger Capan | 1500 m | 2:13.6 | 34 |
| Bill Lanigan | 2:11.7 | 24 | |
| Wayne LeBombard | 2:11.2 | 23 | |
| Richard Wurster | 2:08.4 | 19 | |
| Bill Cox | 5000 m | 7:58.1 | 25 |
| Bill Lanigan | 7:57.7 | 24 | |
| Wayne LeBombard | 8:03.8 | 28 | |
| Bill Cox | 10,000 m | 17:08.2 | 25 |
| Bill Lanigan | 16:50.1 | 21 |
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jenny Fish | 500 m | 46.3 | |
| Dianne Holum | 46.3 | | |
| Mary Meyers | 46.3 | | |
| Jeanne Ashworth | 1000 m | 1:34.7 | 7 |
| Jenny Fish | 1:38.4 | 23 | |
| Dianne Holum | 1:33.4 |  | |
| Jeanne Ashworth | 1500 m | 2:30.3 | 16 |
| Dianne Holum | 2:28.5 | 13 | |
| Jeanne Omelenchuk | 2:35.5 | 25 | |
| Jeanne Ashworth | 3000 m | 5:14.0 | 10 |
| Toy Dorgan | 5:17.6 | 14 | |
| Jeanne Omelenchuk | 5:14.9 | 11 |
Related articles
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