1. Alpine skiing

Alpine skiing refers to disciplines that involve an athlete skiing down a mountain, rather than skiing across fairly flat terrain or performing aerial jumps.

Skiers must navigate coloured gates spread across the mountain slope in controlled zigzag motions as fast as possible, reaching speeds of around 150kmh.

Rankings are decided by athletes’ times, after one run (downhill and Super-G) or two (slalom, giant slalom, alpine combined).

Events

• Alpine combined

• Downhill

• Giant slalom

• Mixed team parallel

• Slalom

• Super-G

Athlete to watch

American Mikaela Shiffrin is a four-time world slalom champion seeking her third gold medal in as many Olympics.

2. Biathlon

A combination of skiing (events ranging from 7.5 to 15 km for women and 10 to 20 km for men) and shooting (two or four sessions on the range), with missed shots punished with time penalties or penalty loops.

Skiers must ensure they go fast enough to be competitive, but slow enough so they can control their breathing to take an accurate shot on target.

Events

• Individual

• Mass start

• Pursuit

• Relay

• Sprint

Athlete to watch

Tiril Eckhoff of Norway comes to Beijing on the back of a six-medal haul, including four golds, at last year’s World Championships.

3. Bobsleigh

Teams hurtle down a specially designed, ice-covered, twisting track on a sledge which consists of a brake that can be applied from the back, as well as two ropes used for steering. Teams make four runs, with each run counting towards the total time.

Events

• Four man

• Two person

• Women’s monobob

Athlete to watch

Driver Francesco Friedrich will be leading the men’s team from Germany, who are the reigning Olympic champions and also the 2021 world title holders.

4. Cross-country skiing

Twelve races with a variety of distances, formats and styles, which range from Classic (a forward-striding technique), Freestyle (side-to-side) and Skiathlon (a combination of both styles).

Events

• Classic

• Mass start free

• Relay

• Skiathlon

• Sprint free

• Team sprint classic

Athletes to watch

While Therese Johaug (above) is expected to lead the charge for traditional superpowers Norway, who took seven of the 12 gold medals on offer at the last Games, all eyes will be on triple gold medallist Charlotte Kalla as the Swede looks to bring down the curtain on her illustrious career on a high.

5. Curling

Two teams of four players use brooms to slide granite stones towards a target area which comprises four concentric circles.

Teams employ one player to throw a stone while two teammates sweep, with the aim of delivering the stone as close as possible to the centre of the target area.

The team with the stone closest to the centre scores a point. A match takes place over 10 ends, with each team having eight stones per end.

Events

• Men

• Mixed

• Women

Team to watch

The Sweden men’s team may not have won an Olympic gold before but they are the form side having picked up a third successive crown at last year’s World Championship and are now primed to dispose of reigning Olympic champions the United States.

6. Figure skating

Skaters perform elaborately choreographed routines in singles or pairs on an ice rink to music.

Points are awarded for “elements” (such as jumps and spins) and “programme components” (more subjective aspects), with deductions for falls and poor execution.

Events

• Ice Dance

• Pairs

• Singles

• Teams

Athletes to watch

• French pair of Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron (above) are the four-time ice dancing world champions and Olympic silver medallists in 2018, when they suffered a wardrobe malfunction.

• Japan’s “Ice Prince” Yuzuru Hanyu is the only male singles skater to achieve a Super Slam – winning all major competitions in his senior and junior career. In Beijing, he will attempt to match Gillis Grafstrom’s 94-year-old record of three consecutive men’s singles titles.

7. Freestyle skiing

Athletes in the aerials events – halfpipe, slopestyle and moguls – are scored by a panel of judges based on the complexity and skill involved in their tricks.

For big air, competitors are also judged by the height and distance of their jumps.

Ski cross is a timed event, where the first athlete to cross the finish line wins.

Events

• Aerials

• Big Air

• Halfpipe

• Moguls

• Ski Cross

• Slopestyle

Athletes to watch

With 13 events on offer, there are plenty of contenders, including David Wise (above, halfpipe) and Sarah Hoefflin (slopestyle), to look out for. However, Canada’s Mikael Kingsbury seems a sure bet as the reigning Olympic and world champion in the moguls has the most men’s moguls World Cup titles (nine), and has won the most medals at the Freestyle World Championships (11) of any male competitor.

8. Ice hockey

Two teams of six players – typically five skaters and one goaltender – compete on the ice for three 20-minute periods as they attempt to send the rubber puck into the other team’s net, using ice hockey sticks.

If the teams are tied at the end of three periods in a medal round, the game goes into overtime, with a shoot-out after that to decide the outcome.

Events

• Men

• Women

Athlete to watch

Canada have been boosted by news that captain Marie-Philip Poulin will feature in her fourth Games alongside 10 rookies, as the world champions aim to wrest the gold back from the US.

9. Luge

The fastest sport in the Olympics, a single rider goes feet-first and face-up, steering themselves down a special track – spanning 1,615m with a maximum gradient of 18 per cent and 16 curves, including a 360-degree turn – with their calf muscles and shoulders down, at speeds averaging between 120 and 145kmh.

Events

• Doubles

• Singles

• Team relay

Athlete to watch

The Germans are favourites, having dominated the sport, cleaning up 18 gold, 10 silver and nine bronze medals in past tournaments, with four-time gold medallist Natalie Geisenberger, the pick of the bunch.

10. Nordic combined

Nordic Combined is one sport made up of two elements – ski jumping and cross-country skiing.

Athletes earn points for distance and style in their ski jump and those points are then converted into a timing to earn the better jumpers a head start in the staggered cross-country race.

Events

• Individual Gundersen large hill

• Individual Gundersen normal hill

• Team Gundersen large hill

Athlete to watch

Norwegian Jarl Magnus Riiber is a four-gold world champion and has three overall World Cup titles.

11. Short track

Skaters start in groups, skating counter-clockwise on a 111.12m track, with the aim of being faster than their competitors. In the absence of lane markers, the races are very competitive.

Events

• 500m

• 1,000m

• 1,500m

• Mixed team relay

• Team relay

Athletes to watch

• Italy’s Arianna Fontana (above) will be gunning for a record-breaking ninth Olympic medal.

• Dutch sensation Suzanne Schulting took gold in the 1,000m in Pyeongchang and won every event at the 2021 world championships.

12. Skeleton

One of the Winter Olympics’ most exhilarating sports, individual athletes push their sleds to build momentum before leaping aboard and plummeting head first down a steep and icy track at speeds exceeding 129 kmh.

The corners are the most brutal part for athletes, with G-forces up to five times normal levels – higher than some rocket launches.

Events

• Singles

Athlete to watch

Latvia veteran and six-time world champion Martins Dukurs will be a force to be reckoned with after winning the World Cup competition for the 11th time just last month. But the one thing missing from his trophy cabinet is an Olympic gold.

13. Ski jumping

Athletes launch themselves from ramps down a daunting-looking hill, either “normal” (85-109m) or “large” (110-184m), then assume as aerodynamic position as possible to try to soar as far as they can while landing cleanly to gain points for distance and style.

Events

• Large hill individual

• Normal hill individual

• Mixed teams

• Teams

Athlete to watch

Sara Takanashi holds the record for most World Cup wins with 61, helping the Japanese to four overall World Cup titles.

14. Snowboarding

One of the most popular sports of the Games, snowboarding events range from big air, which has snowboarders sliding down a gigantic slope to land complicated tricks, to slopestyle, which shares similar moves to skateboarding like grinds and spins.

Events

• Big air

• Cross

• Halfpipe

• Mixed team cross

• Parallel giant slalom

• Slopestyle

Athlete to watch

The Americans have dominated the sport winning 31 medals, so it comes as no surprise that American star Chloe Kim will be the main draw for fans as the 21-year-old is the reigning world, Olympic and X Games champion and the first to win the title at all three of those major events, as well as at the Youth Olympic Games.

15. Speed skating

Races are contested by skaters on an oval ice ring, competing against the clock as well as each other.

Events

• 500m

• 1,000m

• 1,500m

• 3,000m

• 5,000m

• 10,000m

• Mass start

• Team pursuit

Athlete to watch

The Netherlands have dominated speed skating at the Winter Olympics, winning 121 medals. Ireen Wust is responsible for 11 of those, making her the most decorated speed skater in Olympic history.