Skijoring is a winter sport in which a person on skis is pulled by a horse, a dog, another animal, or a motor vehicle. The name is derived from the Norwegian word skikjøring, meaning "ski driving". Although skijoring is said to have originated as a mode of winter travel, it is currently primarily a competitive sport.
Skijor racing with horses
Demonstration skijoring competition at the 1928 Winter Olympics. Horses are seen in the distance, coming around the bend of the track.
Skijoring with motorcycles, Augustusburg, Germany, 1963
Skijoring with dogs
The Nordic Games were the first international multi-sport event that focused primarily on winter sports, and were held at varying intervals between 1901 and 1926. It was organized by Sweden's Swedish Central Association for the Promotion of Athletics, and more specifically by Viktor Balck, a member of that association and one of the five original members of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). It was, in many ways, a precursor to the modern Winter Olympic Games, whose success was a contributing factor to the Nordic Games's discontinuation in the 1920s.
First Nordic Games poster featuring telemark, 9–17 February 1901