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From February 8 to 24, 2002, Salt Lake City (USA) welcomed the XIX Olympic Winter Games and the largest Winter Games ever with 78 events and nearly 2,400 athletes.

For this event, Youth and Sports Minister Marie-George Buffet came to the U.S. from February 7 to 11 where she represented the French authorities. She attended the opening ceremony, which took place on Friday afternoon, February 8, and various sports events. She also took part in the inauguration of the Club France along with members of the French sports delegation and met with various sports celebrities.

Led by flag bearer Carole Montillet, the 116 French athletes are hoped to win as many medals as in Nagano in 1998. See the results.

In Nagano, (Japan), France won a total of 8 medals ; 2 gold, 1 silver and 5 bronze.

France has hosted the Winter Olympics three times since they began this century, including the very first Games which took place in Chamonix, Mont-Blanc in 1924. The Winter Olympics were then popularly known as the International Winter Sports Week. That year 16 countries participated, with a total of 258 athletes, made up of 245 men and 13 women.

In 1968, France hosted the Winter Olympics a second time in Grenoble. The French skier Jean-Claude Killy became the second Alpine skier in the history of the Winter Olympics to win three gold medals. Once again, in 1992, the Winter Games were held in Albertville, France. The number of countries participating had grown to 64, with 1,801 athletes, consisting of 1,313 men and 488 women.

French skier Carole Montillet, aged 28, was appointed January 23, 2002, by the board of directors of the Comité national olympique et sportif français as the flag bearer of the French delegation for the Olympic Games in Salt Lake City,

Born April 7, 1973 in Grenoble (Isère), the member of the Villard de Lans ski club has already twice attended the Winter Olympic Games. Both times, in 1994 at Lillehammer and 1998 at Nagano, she finished in 14th place in Downhill and Giant Slalom (Super-G).

Carole Montillet placed 5th and 10th respectively in the Super-G and in Downhill during the most recent world championships, which took place in Sankt Anton (Austria). Morillet took third place in Super-G at the World Cup 2000-2001 Finals, after having stood out at Garmisch Paryenkirchen by taking 4th place in Downhill. This season, Montillet also placed second in the Super-G at Lake Louise.