2018 Winter Olympics to Feature Four New Events

In just over a month, the world will turn its eyes toward Pyeongchang, South Korea, where the 2018 Winter Olympics will be held. From February 9-25, we will all be able to enjoy the finest athletes in the world competing in skating, skiing, and even some curling round the clock.

Thanks to constant television and online coverage, Americans in all U.S. time zones will be able to watch the games live. Previously, some portions of the event were delayed in their television coverage. But since South Korea is 14 hours ahead of New York, you might want to wait until the broadcast is aired during prime time.

NBC will once again broadcast the games. It has done so for the Winter Olympics since 2002 (and for the Summer Games since 1988). In fact, the network has a multi-billion dollar contract in place with the International Olympic Committee to broadcast the event through the 2032 games.

According to CNN, we’ll be able to catch four new events during this Winter Olympics: big air snowboarding and freestyle skiing on the slopes, and mass start speed skating and mixed doubles curling on the ice.

This year will also differ in that Russia will be banned from the games as punishment for doping that was uncovered in recent investigations. Any Russian athletes “who receive special dispensation to compete” will appear in neutral uniforms. The Russian flag will never be flown, and history will record that no Russian medals were awarded.

You might recall that South Korea has hosted the Olympics once before, in Seoul for the 1988 Summer Games. The next Winter Games will take place in Beijing, China, in 2022, while the first Winter Olympics took place in Chamonix, France, in 1924.