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The 2014 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XXII Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event held in Sochi, Russia, from 7 February to 23 February. A total of 2,873 athletes from 88 nations participated in 98 events in 7 sports across 15 different disciplines. Of all athletes, 187 of them representing 26 different countries won medals. The Netherlands achieved four podium sweeps in the speed skating, dominating the men's 500 metres, men's 5,000 metres, men's 10,000 metres, and women's 1,500 metres, surpassing the previous record of two podium sweeps. Host nation Russia matched the Soviet Union's 1976 achievement of thirteen gold medals and achieved the leading position on the medal table, making the 2014 Winter Games the fourth where the host nation topped the gold medal count. Slovenia won its first gold medal in alpine skiing, in the first Winter Olympic gold medal tie. Luger Armin Zöggeler of Italy became the first athlete to achieve six Winter Olympic medals over six consecutive games, all achieved at the men's singles event.
Speed skater Ireen Wüst from the Netherlands achieved five medals (two gold and three silver), more than any other athlete. Russian short track speed skater Viktor Ahn, Norwegian cross-country skier Marit Bjørgen, and Belarusian biathlete Darya Domracheva tied for the most gold medals, with three each.
Medal table
The medal table is based on information provided by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and is consistent with IOC convention in its published medal tables. By default, the table is ordered by the number of gold medals the athletes from a nation have won, where nation is an entity represented by a National Olympic Committee (NOC). The number of silver medals is taken into consideration next and then the number of bronze medals.
In the women's downhill event in alpine skiing, two gold medals were awarded for a first place tie. No silver medal was awarded for the event. In the men's super-G alpine skiing, two bronze medals were awarded for a third place tie.
On July 18, 2016, a report was published claiming that the Russian government had sanctioned the use of performance-enhancing drugs by Russian athletes in the 2014 Winter Olympics.
On December 9, 2016, a World Anti-Doping Agency report expanded upon the previous report and included the note that "Two [Russian] [sport] athletes, winners of 4 Sochi Olympic Gold medals, and a female Silver medal winner in [sport] had samples with salt readings that were physiologically impossible" and that "Twelve [Russian] medal winning athletes ... from 44 examined samples had scratches and marks on the inside of the caps of their B sample bottles, indicating tampering". If the reports result in disqualifications, the medal table may be updated.
In December, 2016, following the release of the McLaren report on Russian doping at the Sochi Olympics, the International Olympic Committee announced the initiation of an investigation of 28 Russian athletes at the Sochi Olympic Games. La Gazzetta dello Sport reported the names of 17 athletes, of whom 15 are among the 28 under investigation. The Russian team potentially could be stripped of up to 12 Olympic medals among these athletes alone.
Three ladies artistic skaters were named as being under investigation. They are Adelina Sotnikova, the singles gold medalist, as well as pairs skaters Tatiana Volosozhar and Ksenia Stolbova. Volosozhar and Stolbova won gold and silver medals, respectively, in pairs skating. Both also won gold medals in the team event, which also puts the other eight team medalists at risk of losing their golds.
Six skiers were suspended from competition on the basis of the McLaren report: Evgeniy Belov, Alexander Legkov, Alexey Petukhov, Maxim Vylegzhanin, Yulia Ivanova and Evgenia Shapovalova. Legkov won a gold medal, and Vylegzhanin won three silver medals.
The International Biathlon Union suspended two biathletes who were in the Sochi games: Olga Vilukhina and Yana Romanova, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport. Vilukhina won silver in sprint, and both women were on a relay team that won the silver medal.
The International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation suspended four skeleton sliders. They are among the six athletes on the skeleton team: Nikita Tregubov, Alexander Tretyakov, Sergey Chudinov, Elena Nikitina, Maria Orlova and Olga Potylitsina. Tretyakov won a gold medal, and Nikitina won a bronze.
* Host nation (Russia)