The New Zealand Winter Games is a multi-sport event

Multi-sport event

A multi-sport event is an organized sporting event, often held over multiple days, featuring competition in many different sports between organized teams of athletes from nation-states. The first major, modern, multi-sport event of international significance was the modern Olympic Games.Many...

 held every two years for international athletes. The event is organised by the Winter Games New Zealand Trust.

Overview

The Games are organised by the Winter Games New Zealand Trust with the support of the Government of New Zealand, Sport and Recreation New Zealand

Sport and Recreation New Zealand

Sport and Recreation New Zealand is the New Zealand government body responsible for community sport and recreation programs. It was formed on 1 January 2003 and took over the functions of the Hillary Commission, the New Zealand Sports Foundation and the policy arm of the Office of Tourism and...

 and the New Zealand Olympic Committee

New Zealand Olympic Committee

The New Zealand Olympic Committee is the body in New Zealand responsible for selecting athletes to represent New Zealand in the Summer and Winter Olympic and the Commonwealth Games....

.

The inaugural New Zealand Winter Games was held in August 2009 in the New Zealand city of Dunedin

Dunedin

Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until...

 and the towns Queenstown

Queenstown, New Zealand

Queenstown is a resort town in Otago in the south-west of New Zealand's South Island. It is built around an inlet called Queenstown Bay on Lake Wakatipu, a long thin Z-shaped lake formed by glacial processes, and has spectacular views of nearby mountains....

, Wanaka

Wanaka

Wanaka is a town in the Otago region of the South Island of New Zealand. It is situated at the southern end of Lake Wanaka, adjacent to the outflow of the lake to the Clutha River. It is the gateway to Mount Aspiring National Park. Wanaka is primarily a resort town but has both summer and winter...

 and Naseby

Naseby, New Zealand

Naseby is a small town, formerly a borough, in the Maniototo area of Central Otago, New Zealand. It is named after a village in Northamptonshire, England....

 which are all situated in the Otago Region of New Zealand. Events included alpine skiing

Alpine skiing

Alpine skiing is the sport of sliding down snow-covered hills on skis with fixed-heel bindings. Alpine skiing can be contrasted with skiing using free-heel bindings: Ski mountaineering and nordic skiing – such as cross-country; ski jumping; and Telemark. In competitive alpine skiing races four...

, cross country skiing, curling

Curling

Curling is a sport in which players slide stones across a sheet of ice towards a target area. It is related to bowls, boule and shuffleboard. Two teams, each of four players, take turns sliding heavy, polished granite stones, also called "rocks", across the ice curling sheet towards the house, a...

, figure skating

Figure skating

Figure skating is an Olympic sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform spins, jumps, footwork and other intricate and challenging moves on ice skates. Figure skaters compete at various levels from beginner up to the Olympic level , and at local, national, and international competitions...

, freestyle skiing

Freestyle skiing

Freestyle skiing is form of skiing which used to encompass two disciplines: aerials, and moguls. Except the two disciplines mentioned earlier Freestyle Skiing now consists of Skicross, Half Pipe and Slope Style...

, ice hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

, and snowboarding

Snowboarding

Snowboarding is a sport that involves descending a slope that is covered with snow on a snowboard attached to a rider's feet using a special boot set onto mounted binding. The development of snowboarding was inspired by skateboarding, sledding, surfing and skiing. It was developed in the U.S.A...

. As well as two demostrative events of winter triathlon

Winter triathlon

Winter triathlon is a multisport event involving the continuous and sequential completion of running, mountain biking and cross-country skiing all on snow...

 and luge

Luge

A Luge is a small one- or two-person sled on which one sleds supine and feet-first. Steering is done by flexing the sled's runners with the calf of each leg or exerting opposite shoulder pressure to the seat. Racing sleds weigh 21-25 kilograms for singles and 25-30 kilograms for doubles. Luge...

. Canada was the overall winner of the games, with the United States and Japan in second and third respectively.

The second Winter Games are set to be held in August 2011. Methven

Methven, New Zealand

Methven is a small town in the Canterbury region of the South Island of New Zealand. It is located near the western edge of the Canterbury Plains, 35 kilometres north of Ashburton. It was originally the railhead of a short branch railway off the Main South Line...

, which is situated in the Canterbury Region, was added as a venue along side the venues from the previous Games. The number of events was increased from seven to nine. Winter triathlon was promoted to a full event and speed skating

Speed skating

Speed skating, or speedskating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in traveling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skating...

 was added.

List of Games

Year	Hosts	Dates	Nations	Competitors	Sports	Events	Ref
2009 Details 2009 New Zealand Winter Games The 2009 New Zealand Winter Games was a multi-sport event that was held in the Otago Region of New Zealand. It was held. It was the inaugal New Zealand Winter Games and was organised by the Winter Games New Zealand Trust...	Dunedin Dunedin Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until... , Naseby Naseby, New Zealand Naseby is a small town, formerly a borough, in the Maniototo area of Central Otago, New Zealand. It is named after a village in Northamptonshire, England.... , Queenstown Queenstown, New Zealand Queenstown is a resort town in Otago in the south-west of New Zealand's South Island. It is built around an inlet called Queenstown Bay on Lake Wakatipu, a long thin Z-shaped lake formed by glacial processes, and has spectacular views of nearby mountains.... , Wanaka Wanaka Wanaka is a town in the Otago region of the South Island of New Zealand. It is situated at the southern end of Lake Wanaka, adjacent to the outflow of the lake to the Clutha River. It is the gateway to Mount Aspiring National Park. Wanaka is primarily a resort town but has both summer and winter...	21 August – 30 August	41	816	7	51
2011 Details	Dunedin Dunedin Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until... , Methven Methven, New Zealand Methven is a small town in the Canterbury region of the South Island of New Zealand. It is located near the western edge of the Canterbury Plains, 35 kilometres north of Ashburton. It was originally the railhead of a short branch railway off the Main South Line... , Naseby Naseby, New Zealand Naseby is a small town, formerly a borough, in the Maniototo area of Central Otago, New Zealand. It is named after a village in Northamptonshire, England.... , Queenstown Queenstown, New Zealand Queenstown is a resort town in Otago in the south-west of New Zealand's South Island. It is built around an inlet called Queenstown Bay on Lake Wakatipu, a long thin Z-shaped lake formed by glacial processes, and has spectacular views of nearby mountains.... , Wanaka Wanaka Wanaka is a town in the Otago region of the South Island of New Zealand. It is situated at the southern end of Lake Wanaka, adjacent to the outflow of the lake to the Clutha River. It is the gateway to Mount Aspiring National Park. Wanaka is primarily a resort town but has both summer and winter...	13 August – 28 August	50	1000	9	38