On 14 February 1952, the VI Winter Olympic Games began in Oslo, Norway. They were the first Winter Olympic Games to be held in a large city and not in a tourist resort. They were also the first Winter Olympic Games to include the lighting of the Olympic flame during the opening ceremony and its transport in relays to the Olympic Stadium. The flame was not lit in Olympia, but in Morgedal, the birthplace of Sondre Norheim, the skiing pioneer and inventor of the telemark technique, arriving two days later at the Bislett Stadion for the opening ceremony. The Games were attended by 694 athletes, including 109 women and 585 men, representing 30 countries. Participating for the first time were the Olympic committees of New Zealand and Portugal. After being excluded from the previous edition, the Olympic committees of Germany and Japan were invited to participate in the Games. In 1949, the Federal Republic of Germany was founded and in 1951, the German Olympic Committee was readmitted as a member of the IOC, while the application from East Germany was rejected by the IOC. The IOC proposed the participation of a unified German representative team in the Oslo Games, but East Germany refused. The closing ceremony was held for the first time as a separate event, as until previous editions of the Games it was held at the end of the last scheduled sporting event. The ceremony was held on 25 February 1952, again in the Bislett Stadion. The flag bearers entered the stadium in the same order as during the opening ceremony. This was followed by the medal ceremony for the last four events, the flag ceremony, the first speed skating competition and then a figure skating exhibition, followed by an ice dance performed by 40 children in traditional Norwegian dress. The ceremony was concluded with a display of fireworks.
