Lebanon at the 1960 Winter Olympics
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| Lebanon at the 1960 Winter Olympics | |
|---|---|
.svg) | |
| IOC code | LIB (LEB used at these Games) |
| NOC | Lebanese Olympic Committee |
| Website | www |
| in Squaw Valley, United States | |
| Competitors | 2 (men) in 1 sport |
| Medals |
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| Winter Olympics appearances (overview) | |
Lebanon competed in the 1960 Winter Olympics, which was held from 18 to 28 February 1960 at the Squaw Valley Ski Resort in Olympic Valley, California, United States. This was Lebanon's fourth appearance in a Winter Games after their debut in 1948. It also marked their return to the Olympics after boycotting the 1956 Summer Olympics due to the Suez Crisis. The nation sent two male alpine skiers: Ibrahim Geagea, whose best result was 56th in the men's downhill event, and Nazih Geagea, whose best result was 49th in the men's giant slalom event.
The Lebanese Olympic Committee was founded in 1946 and officially recognised by the International Olympic Committee on 22 November 1947.[1] A few months later, the nation made its debut in the 1948 Winter Olympics in St. Moritz, Switzerland. Their appearance in 1960 marked their fourth Winter Games appearance.[2] The 1960 Games were held in Olympic Valley, California from 18 to 28 February and hosted 665 different athletes in 27 events from 30 different nations.[3]
This also marked Lebanon's first appearance since the 1956 Winter Olympics, as they chose to withdraw from the 1956 Summer Olympics. Lebanon officially withdrew on 25 October 1956, when its International Olympic Committee (IOC) representative, Gabriel Gemayel, wrote a letter to the IOC expressing doubt in the transportation availability from Beirut to Melbourne, and the fact that preparations were underway for the 1957 Arab Games in Beirut.[4] On 21 November, as a result of the Suez Crisis, Lebanon formally shifted its reasoning for its non-participation was to support Egypt's calls for boycott of the Games, due to French and English participation.[5] Iraq would also later withdraw as a result of the Crisis. Scholars consider this boycott to be an example of Pan-Arabism.[6] Because they withdrew for an explicitly political reason, Lebanon violated Rule 1 of the Olympic Charter.[5] As such, the IOC officially condemned Lebanon and Iraq, along with the three European nations who boycotted following the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, and the People's Republic of China, for withdrawing from the Games.[7]
For the 1960 Winter games, Lebanon sent two alpine skiers to the Games: Ibrahim Geagea, who has participated for the country in every Games to this point since their debut in 1948,[8] and Nazih Geagea, an 18-year old making his debut. Nazih Geagea's cousin, Jean Keyrouz, who represented the nation in skiing events at the 1956 Winter Games, was meant to compete at the 1960 Games. However, due to financial constraints, he voluntarily gave up his spot to Nazih. Despite the fact that he was not in the country, he was still listed in the initial starting and results lists of the men's slalom event.[9]