2022 Winter Olympics: Event Schedule and Early Favorites to Win Most Medals

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Ng Han Guan/Associated Press

Less than six months from the end of the Summer Olympics, it will be time for the Games to start again. The 2022 Winter Olympics are set to begin Feb. 4 in Beijing, although some sports will get underway a bit earlier on Feb. 2 and Feb. 3.

When the Winter Olympics last took place in 2018 in PyeongChang, South Korea, the record for most medals at a single Winter Games was set by Norway, which collected 39. Norway’s 14 gold medals were tied for the most with Germany, which ranked second with 31 total medals.

It wouldn’t be a surprise if Norway and Germany are among the top countries again at the 2022 Games. But the Russian Olympic Committee and the United States will look to provide a challenge atop the medal table.

Here’s the full events schedule for the 2022 Winter Olympics, followed by a closer look at the countries that are likely to win the most medals at this year’s Games.

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Ng Han Guan/Associated Press

Opening Ceremony: Feb. 4

Alpine Skiing: Feb. 6-11, Feb. 13, Feb. 15-17, Feb. 19

Bobsleigh: Feb. 13-15, Feb. 18-20

Biathlon: Feb. 5, Feb. 7-8, Feb. 11-13, Feb. 15-16, Feb. 18-19

Cross-Country Skiing: Feb. 5-6, Feb. 8, Feb. 10-13, Feb. 16, Feb. 19-20

Curling: Feb. 2-20

Freestyle Skiing: Feb. 3, Feb. 5-10, Feb. 13-19

Figure Skating: Feb. 4, Feb. 6-8, Feb. 10, Feb. 12, Feb. 14-15, Feb. 17-20

Ice Hockey: Feb. 3-20

Luge: Feb. 5-10

Nordic Combined: Feb. 9, Feb. 15, Feb. 17

Snowboard: Feb. 5-12, Feb. 14-15

Ski Jumping: Feb. 5-7, Feb. 11-12, Feb. 14

Skeleton: Feb. 10-12

Speed Skating: Feb. 5-8, Feb. 10-13, Feb. 15, Feb. 17-19

Short Track Speed Skating: Feb. 5, Feb. 7, Feb. 9, Feb. 11, Feb. 13, Feb. 16

Closing Ceremony: Feb. 20

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Matthias Schrader/Associated Press

Is it possible that Norway could win even more medals than the record 39 it claimed at the 2018 Winter Games? It sure seems that way. Nielsen’s Gracenote recently released its updated virtual medal table forecast for the Beijing Olympics, and it’s projecting the Norwegians to break their own record with 45 total medals.

Not only that, but Gracenote is predicting that Norway will capture 22 gold medals, which would be nearly twice as many as any other nation. So if these predictions come close to being true, it could be a dominant performance by the Norwegians at the 2022 Games.

One athlete who didn’t win a gold medal for Norway in 2018 and could this time is cross-country skier Therese Johaug. Her only previous Olympic gold came in 2010, when she was 21 and won as part of a relay team. But there’s a good chance she’ll have a much better showing at this year’s Games.

Johaug won four gold medals (three individual) at the 2021 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, and she’s set to compete in three individual events in Beijing. She’ll also be part of a Norwegian relay team that should contend for the gold. So Johaug could play a big role in helping Norway rack up medals at the 2022 Games.

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Matthias Schrader/Associated Press

As part of the punishment the nation received from the World Anti-Doping Agency, Russian athletes will again be competing under the name of the Russian Olympic Committee in Beijing. That was also the case at the 2018 Winter Games and the 2020 Summer Games.

The ROC ranked tied for sixth with 17 total medals in 2018, but it could have a much better showing this year. Gracenote is even projecting the Russians to finish second with 32 total medals, behind only Norway. If that happens, they would set the record for most medals won by a team representing Russia or the Soviet Union at a Winter Games.

One athlete to watch will be cross-country skier Alexander Bolshunov. The 25-year-old has never won an Olympic gold medal, but he came away with three silvers and a bronze in 2018. He won the gold in the 30-kilometer skiathlon at the 2021 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, so he could be poised to win Olympic gold for the first time in 2022.

Natalya Voronina, a 27-year-old speed skater, is another athlete who has a good chance to win an Olympic gold medal for the first time in Beijing. She won the bronze in 2018 in the 5,000-meter race, an event in which she now holds the world record.

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Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images

It shouldn’t be a surprise that Germany is likely to have a strong showing at the 2022 Winter Olympics, considering how well the country fared in 2018. The Germans are projected by Gracenote to finish with 25 total medals, which would edge the U.S. and Canada (22 each) for third overall.

One sport that Germany should dominate in is the men’s bobsleigh, thanks to Francesco Friedrich. The 31-year-old won two gold medals in 2018 as part of the two-man and four-man teams. And he’s helped the Germans have a ton of success at world championships in recent years.

Julia Taubitz won two gold medals at the FIL World Luge Championships in December, so she seems poised to win an Olympic gold medal for the first time. 

Germany is projected to finish with fewer medals in 2022 than it won in 2018, but it has the talent to perform better than expectations.